Dave Van Horn gives humble response on passing Norm DeBriyn

Dave Van Horn was nothing but humble after passing his hero — Norm DeBriyn — on the all-time wins list.
While his team was in a celebratory mood after their victory, the Arkansas coach took a moment to reflect on how much the honor truly means to him.
“Norm’s the best. Norm’s the best, I don’t care,” started Van Horn. “Norm’s best coach ever. I’m still working.
“He did it when they played at the fairgrounds. They had a crappy field. They had nothing. He did it then. Yeah, maybe they played some different teams than we play these days. I haven’t won that many games at Arkansas. That’s just from Division II one year, to Division I, how many years I’ve been coaching. Hey, it’s awesome. It’s an honor. I’ve had a lot of great players, a lot of great coaches and we’ve won a lot of games.
“I’m proud of it. But, never did I ever go try to catch Norm DeBriyn, because you know, I worked for him. I played for him. We talk, we text all the time. He comes by my office. Man’s 81, 82 years old. He comes by for 15 minutes and then we talk for a minute and he’ll get up and say, ‘Well, I got my baseball fix. I’ll see you later. I’ll see you Norm.’ It’s pretty cool.”
Evidently, the record still hasn’t sunk in for Dave Van Horn. Nevertheless, the Arkansas coach made history, and he’ll forever be remembered in the record books.
Top 10
- 1New
SEC Football
Predicting 1st loss for each team
- 2
ESPN acquires RedZone
$1 Billion agreement
- 3Hot
College Football Playoff
Ranking Top 32 teams for 2025
- 4Trending
Tim Brando
Ranks Top 15 CFB teams for 2025
- 5
Most improved teams
Top 12 for 2025
Get the Daily On3 Newsletter in your inbox every morning
By clicking "Subscribe to Newsletter", I agree to On3's Privacy Notice, Terms, and use of my personal information described therein.
WATCH: Arkansas punches ticket to Super Regionals with Hagen Smith strikeout
Moreover, the Razorbacks advanced to the Super Regional round with a 7-3 win over Oklahoma State after a pair of clutch innings by Hagen Smith. Smith took over pitching duties to close the game in the eighth inning with one runner on base and no outs. While he hit the first batter he faced with a pitch, he got one out on a fielder’s choice that advanced a runner to third base.
Then, Smith walked the next batter, loading the bases with just one out recorded. He then proceeded to completely dominate on the mound, striking out both batters the Cowboys sent up to finish the inning without giving up a run. In the ninth inning, Smith struck out another two batters — including a full-count strike three right over the plate as the Oklahoma State batter watched it fly by.
Now, Arkansas advances to the Super Regional after a wild Stillwater Region that saw the last four games combine for well over 100 runs. The Cowboys were on the brink of elimination after Arkansas mounted an incredible comeback in their first matchup — including an eight-run inning to take the lead. Arkansas won their first meeting 20-12, pushing Oklahoma State into a game against Missouri State on Sunday.
One of the biggest stars for Arkansas during their regional performance was catcher Michael Turner, who recently was the subject of a vicious rant from an area-based ESPN radio host. James McCann, a former Razorback turned MLB pro, shared his support for Turner after his performance this weekend while taking a subtle shot at his critics.
“Good for you, kid,” tweeted McCann. “Show ‘em what a Razorback looks like.”