The Florida Gators who have pretty much nailed down the second spot in the SEC have the task of facing a hungry Arkansas team tommorow:
With the regular season nearing the end and Arkansas' postseason status still uncertain, Heath is feeling the pressure to deliver an NCAA Tournament berth to a hungry group of fans desperate to fill Arkansas into their office pool brackets. It has been five years since the Hogs made an appearance in the Big Dance and even longer since they were ranked. That is an eternity in college basketball. Not too long ago, people across the country would wake up every Tuesday morning, open their newspapers and turn to the agate page only to see Arkansas among the schools listed in the Top 25.
I was in the stands when Nolan Richardson's Razorback team was playing in Charlotte in 1994 for a national title after the Gators went down to Duke earlier in the weekend. Richardson was controversial, but he did recruit quite well, and seemed to produce a nationaly ranked team. Right now the Razorbacks are a bubble team for the big dance, so the Gators will have their hands full playing a team in "must win" mode.