Hog Calls

Liddell's starts translate into Arkansas victories

Arkansas safety Josh Liddell works through drills during practice Saturday, Dec. 13, 2014, at the university's practice facility in Fayetteville.

FAYETTEVILLE -- If Josh Liddell stays healthy every game and the Razorbacks keep correlating starting like he's started, they will finish this season undefeated.

Last season the true freshman from Pine Bluff Dollarway started two games at safety. Arkansas won them both.

With starting strong safety Rohan Gaines suspended the first half because he had been ejected during the previous week's 17-0 SEC victory over LSU that Liddell finished, Liddell started the first half of Arkansas' 30-0 victory over Ole Miss.

Gaines played the second half against Ole Miss and made the highlight play of the game, returning an interception for a 100-yard touchdown, but it was Liddell's first half where Arkansas was staked to a 17-0 lead.

Gaines was suspended by Coach Bret Bielema before last December's Texas Bowl game in Houston against the Texas Longhorns.

Liddell started, and Arkansas romped to a 31-7 victory. The Longhorns were held to 2 net yards rushing and 57 yards passing.

That ought to skyrocket Liddell's confidence straight into the season opener.

It certainly seems to be embodied by his preseason play.

"It's a huge confidence boost," Liddell said. "That's confidence for me to know I've done it before so I can do it again, that it's just football."

Liddell will finally start with Gaines instead of without him in the Sept. 5 season opener against Texas-El Paso at Reynolds Razorback Stadium, and Liddell looks forward to it.

Unfortunately, starting with Gaines means Liddell starts without Alan Turner, who has graduated.

Turner was a fifth-year senior free safety last season, which essentially translated into three-year starting signal-calling quarterback for the defense.

Now, Liddell will quarterback the defense much like Brandon Allen quarterbacks the offense.

The fact that Liddell quarterbacked Dollarway's offense helped prepare him to quarterback Arkansas' defense, Coach Bret Bielema, defensive coordinator Robb Smith and defensive backfield coach Clay Jennings all say.

"As a quarterback everyone in that huddle is looking at you," Jennings said. "So as a free safety, you are the quarterback of that defense. When you make a check, everybody is counting on you to be right. Because if you are wrong, that means that at least six of the seven in the back end have a chance to be wrong, too."

Arkansas' coaches assert the defense trusts that Liddell has it right. He's earned trust physically, muscling up from 6-1, 190, to a solid run-supporting 210, and mentally because he avidly studies the game. So vocally he authoritatively picks up where Turner left off.

"Josh has a great grasp of what we want to do on the defensive side of the ball," Smith said. "He's a great communicator out there."

At free safety, communicating can prove just as important as tackling and pass defending. Many a bewildered young safety exiled to the bench despite gaudy individual stats have learned that the hard way.

Not Liddell.

"He gets it," Bielema said. "Josh Liddell has continued to emerge not only as one of the better players in our secondary, but one of the better players on our team."

Sports on 08/29/2015