FAYETTEVILLE -- Arkansas Coach Bret Bielema touted the Razorbacks last week as "a good football team, no ifs, ands or buts," and he's opened the door for fans to get their first look at the 2015 team today.
The Razorbacks will hold their first public scrimmage at Reynolds Razorback Stadium at 11:15 a.m. today. Gates 1 and 10 will open at 11 a.m. for the workout, which Bielema said would be more extensive than last week's 82-play scrimmage at the stadium.
"It will be the biggest scrimmage besides the spring game," Bielema said, noting the team would install short-yardage plays on both sides during the week to allow for more move-the-ball sequences today. "We'll get a good feel for where we are, put a 40-second clock in with our quarterbacks and make everything work."
"I think we're doubling the amount of plays we did from last scrimmage, so it's going to be kind of like a game atmosphere and a game in terms of the amount of plays," senior quarterback Brandon Allen said. "So we're looking to finish strong, especially when we're all tired, to finish and not have any mental errors or anything like that."
The addition of fans also will add a different feel for the Razorbacks.
"It's always a fun atmosphere when we've got fans in the stands," Allen said. "I think it'll give this team that extra bit of juice when we get out there that, OK, now we're not just practicing in front of the coaches, we're playing in front of people, so I want to do that much better. I think it'll be a great atmosphere."
New offensive coordinator Dan Enos said he ran closed scrimmages during his tenure as head coach at Central Michigan.
"I think it's really neat that Coach Bielema allows that," he said. "I've been at a lot of places where they don't let anybody in, but that just goes to show you how in tune Coach is with the community and how passionate this fan base is."
The Razorbacks committed no turnovers in last week's work, which helped validate the ball security approach they've taken this spring. But what was a positive for the offense meant the defense didn't force any turnovers, one of the key facets for coordinator Robb Smith's unit.
"We didn't create any turnovers, and we need to eliminate big plays and eliminate missed tackles," secondary coach Clay Jennings said. "We had seven missed tackles in the secondary alone. That's way too many. We gave up four touchdown passes in 82 plays, and that's too many, too. We cut a couple of guys loose and let a couple of guys get behind us so we've got to eliminate that."
The defense has not been allowed to tackle below the belt, a rule instituted by Bielema to reduce the risk of severe injuries, and that played into the missed tackle count.
"We're not where we want to be there yet but, you know, it was the first scrimmage," Smith said. "Sometimes maybe I look at it through a different set of glasses, but we've got some work to do there."
The defense posted seven "sacks" a week ago, which is simply tapping the quarterbacks -- who are off-limits for contact -- with one hand.
"I'd like to see us pick up the physicality a little bit this next scrimmage and somebody just step up and take over," defensive line coach Rory Segrest said. "I think guys are making progress and we're getting where we need to be."
Senior tailback Jonathan Williams is not expected to participate in the live tackling parts of the scrimmage, but junior Alex Collins, a two-time 1,000-yard rusher, is supposed to take live reps.
Bielema said he pulled Collins aside prior to last Saturday's scrimmage and told the running back that he was going to take part in that scrimmage and today's scrimmage and coaches would make a determination of where Collins is at.
"He got a little heavy on spring [break]," Bielema said. "He went down and enjoyed Fort Lauderdale home cooking I think a little too much."
The tailback rotation has dealt with a series of hits in the spring. Juan Day suffered a knee injury that required surgery during the first week of drills and Denzel Evans was shaken up by a collision last Saturday.
Senior receiver Keon Hatcher is unlikely to be at full strength after suffering a bruised knee last Thursday, giving the rest of the receiving corps more opportunities. Juniors Eric Hawkins and Drew Morgan led the unit last week, with Hawkins catching a 63-yard touchdown from Austin Allen for the second unit and Morgan making two touchdown catches with the starters.
"I feel like we picked up just where [Hatcher] was at," said Morgan, a Greenwood High graduate. "Once he was out, I feel like me and Jared [Cornelius] and Cody [Hollister] and Hawk and Jojo [Robinson] brought it upon ourselves."
Sports on 04/11/2015