An exclusive conversation with 4 Star Sports Media

On its face, Arkansas Razorbacks hockey is a club operation tucked into one sheet of ice at the Jones Center, sharing space with youth teams, public skates, and every other group that can squeeze into prime-time hours. But listen to the people building it, and you quickly realize this is a much bigger project: it’s a push toward national-level hockey in Northwest Arkansas, anchored by the combined drive of men’s czar Keller Sims and women’s head coach Andrew Falls.

“Hogs Can Skate”: How Keller Sims and Andrew Falls Are Building National-Level Hockey in Fayetteville

In an exclusive conversation with 4 Star Sports Media, Falls didn’t hesitate when asked what the name “Keller Sims” means to him.

“He’s one of our best friends up here, a family friend,” Falls said. “Our kids hang out together all the time. We have that bond now — it’s a lifetime bond.”

Then he turned from friendship to impact.

“I don’t think people realize how much work he puts in,” Falls said. “It is an immense amount of work. Now he’s heading up the conference for the men’s side, and they’re talking about starting a women’s conference and bringing us into that. He’s doing it seven days a week, and it’s not his full-time job. He has a full-time job.”

That grind, Falls says, is the backbone of where Arkansas hockey is today.

“We’re not where we are as a program without him,” he said. “You cannot tell me otherwise from a success level on the ice and the consistency off the ice. We don’t have it without him.”

The Five-to-Nine Life

When Falls describes Sims, he uses a phrase that perfectly captures the reality of grassroots hockey building in SEC country.

“It’s the whole ‘old school’ of the nine-to-five and the five-to-nine,” Falls said. “The five-to-nine he spends every day worried about hockey.”

That effort has turned what once felt like a niche club into something much more structured and ambitious. Falls says the systems Sims has put in place are “so well structured, so efficient,” and he’s quick to point out that the growth isn’t just on the scoreboard.

We at 4 Star Sports Media will admit that, in the four years we’ve been covering them, we’ve seen immense growth not only on the ice but, more importantly, off the ice. Every year it’s a step up. There’s never a wobble; it’s just stepping up every year.

Sims himself, according to Falls, doesn’t like to accept credit.

“He will not accept that praise,” Falls said. “He’s the team player: ‘It’s all about the guys, it’s all about everybody else; it’s never about me.’”

But in Fayetteville, there’s really no way to talk about the Razorbacks men’s and women’s clubs without talking about him.

One Sheet of Ice, Big Ambitions

The push toward national relevance hasn’t been easy. There is, quite literally, limited space.

“Everyone’s on one sheet of ice,” Falls said of the Jones Center. “The men’s team needs ice time; the youth programs need ice time; public skate is a big revenue driver. Historically, the Jones Center has kind of been anti-back-to-back college games just because of the amount of ice time it takes.”

Despite that, Sims and Falls have already carved out some joint showcases. This season, they’ve lined up a weekend where Arkansas’ men’s D2 team will face Maryville, then the women will play Maryville immediately after.

“It’s going to be awesome,” Falls said. “It’s taking up six hours of ice time on a Friday night or Saturday afternoon, which is prime money-making time, but we’re willing to pay more per hour for that ice. It’s not free ice for us. The university doesn’t own the building.”

There are bigger dreams in the works, too: full-day hockey showcases with multiple Razorback teams on the ice. That will require more negotiation with the facility and youth programs, but the vision is clear – make hockey in Fayetteville impossible to ignore.

Building Toward National Hockey

Under Sims on the men’s side and Falls on the women’s, Arkansas isn’t just trying to survive; it’s trying to position itself as a leader in the ACHA and a model for other SEC and regional programs.

On the women’s side, Falls has been blunt about his ultimate competitive goals.

“Our vision is to qualify for nationals and be a nationally competitive program,” he said. “We’re trying to mimic as much as we can the pros. We travel on buses, we stay in nice hotels, we run this very professionally and efficiently.”

That standard echoes the way the men’s program has raised the bar in recent years. Falls points to consistent, deliberate growth – new staff, better organization, expanded schedules – as evidence that Arkansas hockey is not standing still.

And now, other schools are starting to catch on.

“Everyone’s starting to get on the trend; they’re starting to catch up a little bit with us, which is awesome,” Falls said. “Mizzou’s starting a program that’s supposed to start this year. Oklahoma’s trying to get theirs going so that down the road we can meet them in Tulsa and play, and Missouri State is thinking about getting theirs going in the next couple of years.”

Within that emerging regional ecosystem, Arkansas aims to be a hub, not a follower.

“We’re going to have all those home games,” Falls said. “Mizzou’s going to come down for a home game; Oklahoma wants to come play us — I’m like, great, let’s get these rivalries going. This is going to be awesome; the fans are going to get behind us.”

He knows exactly what those fans can be.

“Razorback fans are crazy; they’re nuts in a good way,” he said. “If they see a Razorback on your jersey, they are behind you 100 percent. They will cheer for you no matter what.”

That’s the energy Sims and Falls are trying to harness – for men’s hockey, for women’s hockey, and ultimately for the idea that national-caliber college hockey can live, and thrive, in Fayetteville.

Both know the long-term stakes.

“The long-term goal is that it continues long after I’m gone,” Falls said. “If Keller’s gone and I’m gone, it needs to continue. We don’t want to let people down. This is about more than just us; it’s about other people.”

Two coaches, one sheet of ice, one big idea: Hogs can skate – and they’re aiming to skate on the national stage.