Luigs, Forte get nod for media days

FAYETTEVILLE — Which two Razorbacks will represent Arkansas at SEC Media Days with first-year Coach Bobby Petrino next week ?

If you guessed Jonathan Luigs on the offensive side, you’d be correct. An All-America senior and the defending Rimington Trophy winner, Luigs was a no-brainer selection to attend the event which typically attracts 700-plus media members to the Wynfrey Hotel in Hoover, Ala.

The Little Rock native and Pulaski Academy graduate not only had a tremendous junior season, Luigs also represented the Razorbacks in fine fashion at the Home Depot Awards Show in Orlando, Fla., and other venues on the postseason awards circuit last December. Luigs and the Arkansas offensive line will likely be the mostly highly touted facets on the 2008 team.

Elston Forte was the choice on the defensive side. Forte is a senior out of Little Rock Mills who started six games last season. He had a solid spring leading a thin linebacking corps.

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“He’s certainly going to be a key, not only on the field but as a leader,” said Kevin Trainor, Arkansas’ associate athletic director for media relations and communications. “Elston is a good representative of our team.” Forte accounted for 51 tackles last season, good for 11 th on the team and third among returning players. With linebacker Freddie Fairchild dismissed from the team earlier this summer, the top returning tacklers for the Razorbacks are junior end Adrian Davis (65 ), junior safety Rashaad Johnson (53 ), Forte, junior tackle Malcolm Sheppard (42 ) and junior linebacker Wendel Davis (39 ).

No bump There shouldn’t be any inadvertent contact between Arkansas Coach Bobby Petrino and former Arkansas Coach Houston Nutt at SEC Media Days next week.

Petrino appears at 10: 40 a. m. Friday, the final day of the three-day event, while Nutt, now the Ole Miss coach, will meet with the media at 10: 40 a. m. Thursday. How big is the Hog ?

Word of a gigantic Razorback logo destined for midfield at Reynolds Razorback Stadium has been a hot topic in the state the past two days after a representative of the stencil maker appeared on “The Sports Animals” with Arkansas Democrat-Gazette Sports Editor Wally Hall and Shawn Arnell on the Arkansas Radio Network.

Neither the reported size of the logo — a whopping 30 yards — nor its positioning on Frank Broyles Field could be confirmed by Kevin Trainor, Arkansas’ associate athletic director for media relations.

It appears speculation on the logo’s size, style, dimensions and positioning will run rampant until the Razorbacks play their season opener against Western Illinois on Aug. 30 at Razorback Stadium.