4/7 Update: Arkansas athletic director Hunter Yurachek has announced the hiring of Musselman.
Nevada head coach Eric Musselman is reportedly currently in negotiations to become the new coach at Arkansas.
Multiple sources confirmed on Monday that Musselman was emerging as a strong candidate for the position.
And now it appears that he will indeed be the new lead man in Fayetteville, according to Stadium’s Jeff Goodman.
Arkansas is in negotiations with Nevada coach Eric Musselman and, barring a last-minute collapse, he will be the next coach for the Razorbacks, source told @Stadium
— Jeff Goodman (@GoodmanHoops) April 7, 2019
Goodman also reports that East Tennessee State head coach Steve Forbes was also in the mix for the position and met with Arkansas officials to discuss the job.
ETSU’s Steve Forbes was involved in Arkansas opening, source told @stadium. Met with administration in Iowa City — where he was grieving the loss of his father, source said. That would explain the confusion about the inaccurate reports regarding Fran McCaffery and Arkansas.
— Jeff Goodman (@GoodmanHoops) April 7, 2019
Reports surfaced that Arkansas was waiting to talk to Texas Tech head coach Chris Beard, but if true, there was likely a change of plans after the Red Raiders advanced to the national title game with Saturday’s win over Michigan State.
There were plenty of other names rumored throughout the week, but those seemed to be based more on speculation than anything else.
Musselman was 110-34 in four seasons at Nevada, where he led the Wolf Pack to three straight NCAA Tournament bids and one Sweet 16 appearance in 2018.
He will be tasked with leading the Razorbacks back to the top of what has become an increasingly competitive SEC, with seven teams making the tournament this season.
The Hogs have not made it beyond the first week of the tournament since 1996, which came a year after back-to-back appearances in the national championship game.
For more SEC basketball coverage, follow me on Twitter @theblakelovell.