Petrino: Wideouts need focus

FAYETTEVILLE — On a windy Thursday on the outdoor practice fields, the Arkansas Razorbacks put in a heap of team periods, including a bit of live tackling, and the wide receivers had Coach Bobby Petrino’s proverbial spurs digging into their sides.

“We had a couple of drops that we don’t normally have,” Petrino said. “It was kind of a combination of the ball not being there right on time, and not going down and making the catches.”

While the tight ends continued to shine, led by D. J. Williams’ two “touchdown” catches from Casey Dick in the team periods, the receivers had fewer big plays. Marques Wade took a play-action throw from Nathan Dick in the left flat and turned it into a 47-yard score during third-down work, and that was the biggest moment for the wideouts.

Otherwise, there were catches on out routes, some drops here and there, mostly over the middle, a late Reggie Fish scoring catch on a short crossing route and a Petrinoenforced defensive pass interference on a London Crawford route.

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“We need to get more speed [at receiver ] on the field, and hopefully will when the freshmen get here in the fall,” Petrino said. “Because I do see us getting into some bad habits, simply because I think some of our defensive backs are faster than our receivers.”

Petrino said the transition to more of a passing attack than what the returning receivers were used to could be an issue.

“We’ve seen times where they can’t maintain their focus,” he said. “They’re not used to getting that many balls thrown at them or taking that many reps and [they’re ] expected to run full speed on every play they run a route, whether they’re getting the ball or not. “ We’ve got to win the mental game first, and once we get used to doing that, then we won’t have the drops and won’t have the errors that we have.”

Position push Though they’re not being called out by name, some starting positions have mostly already been won, particularly on the offensive and defensive fronts with players like Jonathan Luigs, Mitch Petrus, DeMarcus Love, Ray Dominguez, Adrian Davis and Malcolm Sheppard. Also, Michael Smith appears to be maintaining his edge at tailback. “With Michael Smith up at full speed and running, I think he has more knowledge of what’s going on in the backfield,” Coach Bobby Petrino said. “We still need to get Brandon [Barnett ] and Chip Gregory playing better and playing more physical. I thought Brandon ran the ball better today. But again, he’s got to hold onto it and pass protect.” Barnett fumbled five times in Saturday’s scrimmage.

Holding hands One thing fans will notice from the offensive line is that on plays when silent counts are used, the guards will hold a finger or two of the tackle on their side. Offensive line coach Mike Summers sold the concept to Coach Bobby Petrino at Louisville in 2003, and it caught on. “The further you are away from the ball, the harder it is to know when to go,” Summers said. In this system, the tackle doesn’t have to watch the ball being snapped. “We have to get our eyes on those fast defensive ends,” Petrino said. “That way we’ll get out of there faster on the pass rush,” tackle Ray Dominguez said. “If you’re dealing with a guy that’s a 4. 5 [runner in the 40-yard dash ] off the edge, it’s going to be a lot better.” What of the somewhat unmanly holding of hands ? “[Summers ] convinced me that we could still be tough and hold hands,” Petrino said with a laugh. “We’re pretty secure with our manhood, so I think we can get away with holding hands on the football field,” center Jonathan Luigs said.

Worth noting The defense stood out early in the team periods and was “flying around,” according to Coach Bobby Petrino.... Players on both sides of the ball performed well during insiderun periods, earning praise. “Much more physical than the other day,” Petrino said.... Linebacker Ryan Powers forced a fumble on an over-the-middle catch by D. J. Williams, who is catching more balls than anyone this spring.... Safety Dallas Washington, end Adrian Davis and linebackers Chip Gregory, Stephen Barnett and Josh Minde all had sacks or tackles for loss during team periods.... Linebacker Jerry Franklin delivered the loudest hit of the day, cracking into Michael Smith on a short gain over the left side.

Up next The Razorbacks will work in half-pads in today’s 4 p. m. practice in advance of the third scrimmage of spring Saturday.