After opening the 2020 season with seven straight games in the friendly confines of Baum-Walker Stadium, Arkansas is hitting the road to play in the Shriners Hospitals for Children College Classic this weekend.

The tournament - which is played in Minute Maid Park, the home of MLB’s Houston Astros - is essentially an SEC/Big 12 challenge, with Arkansas, LSU and Missouri squaring off against Oklahoma, Texas and Baylor.

Here’s a preview of the Razorbacks’ upcoming games…

Schedule (TV)

Friday, Feb. 28 - vs. Oklahoma - 3 p.m. (AT&T Sports Net/Astros.com/MLB.com)

Saturday, Feb. 29 - vs. Texas - 7 p.m. (AT&T Sports Net/Astros.com/MLB.com)

Sunday, March 1 - vs. Baylor - 7 p.m. (AT&T Sports Net/Astros.com/MLB.com)

All three games will be broadcast on AT&T Sports Net, the channel that broadcasts the Houston Astros’ games. If you don’t get that channel, they’ll also be streamed live on Astros.com and MLB.com.

Weather Report

Temperatures in Houston are expected to be in the 70s all weekend, with a slight chance of rain Sunday, but none of that matters because Minute Maid Park has a retractable roof. Head coach Dave Van Horn said one of the reasons he loves playing in this tournament is because of that fact, as it guarantees they’ll get all three games in.

Arkansas’ Starting Rotation (season stats)

Friday - So. RHP Connor Noland (2 games/2 starts, 2-0, 1.42 ERA, 14 K/4 BB, 12 2/3 IP)

Saturday - So. LHP Patrick Wicklander (2 games/2 starts, 2-0, 0.00 ERA, 14 K/3 BB, 11 IP)

Sunday - Jr. RHP Kole Ramage (3 games/1 start, 1-0, 2.84 ERA, 4 K/3 BB, 6 2/3 IP)

There was no change at the top of the rotation, as Noland and Wicklander have been the Friday and Saturday starters each of the first two weekends, but Van Horn did have a somewhat surprising choice for Sunday.

Ramage struggled in his Thursday start against Gonzaga, giving up a couple of runs and failing to make it out of the third inning. However, he was pitching on short rest and Van Horn said he deserves a chance to throw on normal rest.

Click here for more on the Razorbacks’ starting rotation this weekend.

In the Polls

Arkansas is officially a consensus top-10 team, with Baseball America moving it up to No. 9 following the four-game sweep of Gonzaga. The Razorbacks are as high as No. 2 in one of the polls (NCBWA), but check in at No. 4 in this week’s HawgBeat Composite Poll.

Friday’s matchup with Oklahoma will be a top-20 showdown, as the Sooners are No. 20 in the composite. Texas is just outside of the top 25, leading the “receiving votes” section, while Baylor is not ranked in any of the polls.

Scouting the Opponents

Oklahoma Sooners

2019 record: 33-23 (11-13 Big 12)

2020 record: 7-2

Head coach: Skip Johnson (third season)

Projected starter: Jr. RHP Cade Cavalli (2 games/2 starts, 1-1, 2.31 ERA, 17 K/2 BB, 11 2/3 IP)

This is the matchup scouts are probably most looking forward to because it pits Cavalli against Arkansas’ talented lineup.

Cavalli has been two-way player for the Sooners, but is focusing solely on pitching this year. It’s easy to see why, as he consistently throws 97, 98 miles per hour. He started the fall scrimmage in Fayetteville back in September and needed just 13 pitches to retire the Razorbacks in order in his lone inning of work.

Oklahoma actually used a different pitcher each inning in that exhibition and kept Arkansas’ bats silent for the most part, limiting them to just two runs on six hits over the first nine innings. Even though the Razorbacks haven’t met Oklahoma in the regular season since 2012, that experience could be invaluable.

“I don’t think anything replaces seeing them physically on the field, compared to video,” Van Horn said. “You can see the speed of the game; you really get to have an idea of what they can be all about.”

So far this season, the Sooners have won series against Virginia - which is ranked in Perfect Game’s poll - and Illinois State - a solid team out of the Missouri Valley Conference.

They are led by a strong pitching staff that is holding opponents to a .193 batting average and averaging 11.4 strikeouts per nine innings. One of Oklahoma’s bullpen arms is left-hander Braxton Webb, the twin brother of Arkansas left fielder Braydon Webb.

Offensively, outfielder Tanner Tredaway leads the team with a .405 batting average and is slugging .811 thanks to three doubles, three triples and two home runs. Third baseman Peyton Graham (.355) and first baseman Tyler Hardman (.333) are off to good starts, as well, with Hardman also having a pair of home runs.

Texas Longhorns

2019 record: 27-27 (7-16 Big 12)

2020 record: 9-0

Head coach: David Pierce (fourth season)

Projected starter: So. RHP Ty Madden (2 games/2 starts, 2-0, 0.60 ERA, 14 K/2 BB, 15 IP)

The Longhorns are off to a hot start, with a perfect record that includes weekend sweeps of Rice and Boise State.

Coming off a freshman season in which he went 4-1 with a 3.40 ERA, Madden has established himself as a solid No. 2 starter for the Longhorns. He’s struck out 14 batters while walking only two and limiting them to a minuscule .122 batting average.

For the most part, Texas has struggled at the plate. It is hitting just .243 as a team and only two regular starters are hitting above .250. However, those two guys are swinging it really well: center fielder Duke Ellis is hitting .357 and right fielder Austin Todd is hitting .342.

Baylor Bears

2019 record: 35-19 (14-8 Big 12)

2020 record: 5-3

Head coach: Steve Rodriguez (fifth season)

Projected starter: Sr. RHP Hayden Kettler (2 games/2 starts, 1-1, 4.50 ERA, 4 K/2 BB, 10 IP)

The Bears have made three straight regionals, as Rodriguez - whom Van Horn worked with while coaching Team USA - continues to build the program back to a national contender like it was in 2012.

They got off to a good start by winning a series against Nebraska, but are coming off a series loss to Oral Roberts.

Coming into 2020, most of the attention was on Preseason Big 12 Player of the Year shortstop Nick Loftin, who’s hitting .333 and has a home runs so far, but center fielder Jared McKenzie is hitting better than almost anyone in the conference. His .485 batting average ranks third in the Big 12.

Stat of the Week

For the first time in school history, Arkansas had the SEC Player of the Week in consecutive weeks. After Heston Kjerstad earned it for his impressive showing against Eastern Illinois, Robert Moore got the honor for an incredible weekend against Gonzaga.

The 17-year-old freshman did a little bit of everything for the Razorbacks, doing damage at the plate, playing excellent defense - with his glove flip to first earning a spot on SportsCenter’s Top 10 Plays - and showcasing heads up base running.

The most impressive statistic from his weekend, though, was that he came up to bat with a runner on second and/or third seven times in the series and got a hit each at bat. Going 7 for 7 with runners in scoring position helped him rack up nine RBIs.