FAYETTEVILLE — A shoulder injury suffered in the third game last season forced Arkansas quarterback Brandon Allen to miss most of the Razorbacks' practices for the rest of the year.
Allen revealed the severity of his shoulder injury during an interview on Sports Talk with Bo Mattingly on Thursday. Allen said he practiced only one day per week for several weeks after suffering a separated AC joint.
"I couldn't throw without shots," Allen said, referencing injections to numb pain. "They kind of leave soreness afterward. We picked Wednesday, so I'd get a shot and go out there and practice. Then I'd be sore Thursday and Friday, and be ready for Saturday.
"It would feel brand new. I couldn't feel it, so I had no problem. They taped it down and padded it up, and I was good to go."
Arkansas coach Bret Bielema said last week that Allen sat out practices leading up to the Razorbacks' first six SEC games last season, though he started every conference game. Allen struggled after the injury with velocity and accuracy, which led to the majority of his 10 interceptions, including two that were returned for touchdowns.
"I'd have to get all my reps in that one day and try to see everything on the field in that one day," Allen said. "…Tuesday, Thursday and the walk-through Friday, those were just me on the sideline trying to see it all. That's tough as a player. Not getting the on-field reps is tough because you want to see it as much as you can while you're on the field. That way when you get to game time, it all looks more familiar than it does from the sidelines. That was the toughest thing for me, just not being able to be in the practice getting the reps from the field."
Allen, who is still the Razorbacks' first-team quarterback, opted against surgery on the shoulder following the season. He said he feels great ahead of Arkansas' preseason practices, which begin next week.
"I think I have more velocity than I did last year, so I'm not timid about laying out," Allen said. "I've landed on it already, so I know I'm 100 percent. There's nothing that's holding it back."
Though he struggled with two interceptions in the first half of Arkansas' spring game, Allen showed better arm strength and accuracy during the team's other open scrimmages in April. In the first two scrimmages, the Fayetteville native combined to complete 26 of 35 passes for 349 yards, 3 touchdowns and 1 interception against the Razorbacks' first-team defense.
Allen attended the IMG Academy in Bradenton, Fla., earlier this summer and worked with former Florida State quarterback and Heisman Trophy winner Chris Weinke.
"We did a bunch of footwork drills," Allen said. "We watched some of my film from the games and the biggest thing he noticed was my footwork was not where it needed to be. So this whole summer has been huge for me in terms of footwork and keeping a base on all my throws. I think I'm a lot more accurate right now. Last year my feet would be everywhere. I'd be trying to throw different throws off-balance and they wouldn't be good throws."
Arkansas coaches have indicated they have seen Allen mature in the nine months since the team's last game. Bielema said he expects the quarterback's growth to lead to a better team.
"I think he physically is a different player, but the greatest thing is what his teammates say about him," Bielema said. "When you're evaluating quarterbacks, it's not so much about what they say as it is what the people around them say.
"When our guys talk about BA right now, they talk about his voice in the huddle, his leadership skills, his demeanor in the non-coaching sessions, when we can't be there the way he just takes control of it."
Allen said he has learned to take things like criticism and errors better in stride.
"Something we’ve worked on is that adversity is going to happen in every game. They’re going to score, turnovers happen, so when adversity does happen, you can’t let it affect you," Allen said. "We just have to go out there and perform and not let one bad thing roll into another one and roll into another one. I think that’s something myself and the rest our team is working on."