Injury doesn't hurt Day's opportunity

The Arkansas Razorbacks knew everything they needed about running back Juan Day before he even entered his senior season at North Little Rock.

Day had rushed for 915 yards and 13 touchdowns in 2012, leading the Charging Wildcats to the semifinals of the Class 7A state playoffs while splitting time in the backfield with Altee Tenpenny, who is currently playing for Alabama.

That was enough to convince Arkansas to offer Day a scholarship, and it didn't take much to convince the running back that Fayetteville was the place for him.

"I like the direction the program is going," Day said when he announced March 7, 2013, that he was orally committing to the Razorbacks. "I like the style of offense, and I think it fits me."

Everything seemed to be going Day's way as he went into the 2013 season as one of the state's top prospects. He ran for 151 yards and one touchdown in North Little Rock's season-opening victory against Lake Hamilton, and followed that up with 143 yards on 22 carries in victory over South Panola, Miss., in the second week of the season.

It didn't last. Day tore an anterior cruciate ligament in the third week of the season while trying to make a cut on a running play in North Little Rock's 35-14 victory against Pine Bluff, shutting down a senior season that had begun so promisingly.

Surgery followed in October, but the Razorbacks never backed off the running back. Day, 6-2, 210 pounds, signed with Arkansas on national signing day in February, and he completed his rehabilitation work over the summer is and ready to go as a freshman.

"His attitude was great," North Little Rock Coach Brad Bolding said of the way Day responded to his injury. "He was a leader. That's a tough injury for a kid who had a lot of publicity. To have such a good start of his senior year and for it to end in the third game was difficult."

Day, a cousin of former Razorbacks running back Cedric Cobbs, was rated a three-star prospect by ESPN, Rivals.com and Scout.com going into his senior season. He was ranked as the third-best prospect in the state by Rivals and the No. 40 running back in the country.

Arkansas offensive coordinator Jim Chaney said he is looking forward to working with Day, who joins a standout group running back in Fayetteville that features Alex Collins, Jonathan Williams and Korliss Marshall.

"I've always liked him," Chaney said. "I think he's a real physical football player. How quick he can get back to full speed after the knee injury and how confident he can get and how quick he can do it and learn everything remains to be seen, but I'm excited about him."

Bolding said Day could be successful in Chaney's run-first offense, which leans heavily on its offensive linemen and a strong group of running backs. Arkansas averaged 208.7 rushing yards per game last season and ranked third in the SEC, despite going 0-8 in league play and finishing 3-9 on the season.

Bolding said Day's talent speaks for itself.

"He's going to be a big-time player for Arkansas," he said. "He's a good north-south runner, a one-cut guy."

Arkansas running backs coach Joel Thomas said he is eager to see where Day will fit in following his injury.

"Early on when he did play I saw a bigger back, and when he gets rolling he was going pretty good there," Thomas said. "He caught the ball OK. That's something he needs to work on. The whole idea for him is I have got to find a baseline of where he is at in the whole scheme."

Bolding said one thing Arkansas' coaches can be certain of is that they have a "class act" in Day.

"He conducts himself the right way on and off the field," Bolding said. "Players get attached to him because he's easy to like."

Information for this article was contributed by Tom Murphy of the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette.

Sports on 08/09/2014