Arkansas Business

This story is from the archives of ArkansasSports360.com.

Arkansas will finally celebrate the anniversary of its 1994 basketball national championship.

Coach Nolan Richardson and the team will be honored March 1 against Georgia. It will be the first official university celebration of the title since it the year the title was won.

Plans to honor the coach and players were announced Tuesday by the university. "Celebration of a Championship" will include a halftime ceremony of the 15th anniversary of the championships and a private reception on Feb. 28.

"It's a great honor," Richardson told ArkansasSports360.com on Tuesday. "It gets the players back together and they relive the glory days. It's a token of appreciation. I'm sure the players will enjoy it today more than they would have five years ago or 10 years ago."

Richardson, a recent inductee into the National Collegiate Basketball Hall of Fame, complied a 389-169 record in 17 seasons at Arkansas. He was with the Razorbacks from 1985-2002 and guided them to three NCAA Tournament Final Fours.

Arkansas finished the 1993-94 season 31-3. The Razorbacks defeated Duke, 76-72, in the national title game before an audience that included President Bill Clinton.

There was a time when Richardson's accomplishments were somewhat overshadowed by his legal battles with Arkansas. He was fired in 2002 and brought a racial discrimination lawsuit against the school.

Pending litigation was among the factors that kept the university from having a proper 10th anniversary celebration of the Razorbacks' national title. All that seems to be behind the involved parties (the chancellor and athletic director who forced Richardson out have since been forced out themselves).
 
Richardson, athletic director Jeff Long and Arkansas Coach John Pelphrey will be on hand for a Friday press conference announcing the celebration. Richardson and Long began working to repair the relationship between the university and coach earlier this year.

"We must move on," Richardson said. "It's time to come together and celebrate."

Richardson and a number of players celebrated their championship last year at the Northwest Arkansas Tip-Off Club. Former Richardson assistant Wayne Stehlik is head of the organization.

Long said at that time, he was open to reconciling things with Richardson.

"There is a time for everything. That time is now," Long said earlier this year. "Certainly, I think the time is right for that. We're excited."

Members of the title team will be on hand March 1 to sign autographs from noon until 2 p.m. Beginning at noon, the 1994 national championship game will be played on the video board hanging above midcourt.

All the players from that team but Darnell Robinson have been accounted for, Richardson said.

Arkansas was led in 1993-94 by sophomores Corliss Williamson and Scotty Thurman. Williamson averaged 20.4 points per game and it was Thurman's three-point shot with 51 seconds remaining to give the Razorbacks a lead they would not relinquish.

Tip-off against Georgia is set for 3:05 p.m. Raycom will televise the game. It is the final home game of the season for the Razorbacks.