Arkansas forward receives eligibility decision for 2026-27, per report
By Sydney Hunte
Published:
Arkansas faced some questions about the status of forward Miikka Muurinen after the freshman spent a season playing professionally in Serbia.
Those questions were answered on Thursday. Muurinen will indeed be eligible to play for the Razorbacks during the 2026-27 season, according to 247Sports’ Connor Goodson.
Muurinen relocated to the United States at 16 and attended Sunrise Christian Academy in Kansas. After one season, he joined Arizona Compass Prep before heading to Serbia to play for KK Partizan on a three-year contract. In the spring of 2026, he announced his intentions to play collegiately.
That’s where the Finnish native ran into a roadblock. The NCAA was in the midst of a crackdown on professional players, primarily those who had played collegiately but sought to return to the college ranks after playing in the G League or the NBA Summer League. Muurinen committed to Arkansas in April, but his status for the 2026-27 season was in limbo until Thursday, as the path was cleared for him to play for the Razorbacks.
Muurinen will hope to stand out for a Razorbacks team that is coming off a Sweet 16 appearance. Arkansas ended up winning the SEC Tournament, then topped Hawaii and High Point before eventually falling to Arizona.
Sydney is an Atlanta-based journalist who has covered everything from SEC and ACC football to MLS, the U.S. men's national soccer team and professional tennis. His work has appeared on such platforms as SB Nation, Cox Media Group and FanSided.
