UA's Winston gets final shot at Bama

Arkansas defensive end JaMichael Winston works through a drill during practice Saturday, April 18, 2015, at the university's practice facility in Fayetteville.

TUSCALOOSA, Ala. -- Arkansas defensive end JaMichael Winston wants to win every game, but today's matchup against No. 8 Alabama in Bryant-Denny Stadium carries a little more significance.

It's the last time Winston, a redshirt junior from Pritchard, Ala., will play Alabama in his home state.

"Alabama is the main team I've wanted to beat since I came to Arkansas," Winston said. "So it's always a big deal when I play those guys.

"They've been on the top of the mountain for a long time. They've got a good thing going in their stadium, and it would be great to go in there and get a W."

Winston -- Arkansas' only player from Alabama -- has yet to experience a victory over the Tide. The Razorbacks have lost eight in a row to Alabama, including 14-13 last season in Fayetteville.

"That was a heart-breaker," Winston said.

Winston, who started 12 games last season and the first three games this season, has played off the bench against Texas A&M and Tennessee the past two weeks with redshirt sophomore Tevin Beanum joining junior college transfer Jeremiah Ledbetter as the starting ends.

It may seem odd for Winston, elected as team captain before this season, to play off the bench, but it hasn't been an issue.

"JaMichael's actually handled it really well," Arkansas defensive line coach Rory Segrest said. "That was obviously one of the things I looked at in making that move. I was wondering how he was going to respond to it, but JaMichael's a really mature guy.

"There's a reason why he was voted a team captain. The players respect him whether he's starting or not starting. They know he's going to play a lot."

Winston had two tackles at Tennessee, including dropping tailback Jalen Hurd for a 1-yard loss.

"It's different, but I can handle it," Winston said of not starting. "I've been here for four years and seen a lot and done a lot. I feel like I can handle anything that's thrown my way.

"I've just got to keep working and keep competing. That's all that's on my mind."

Arkansas Coach Bret Bielema said he had "a little situation come up last week" where he brought his team leaders, including Winston, together for a discussion.

"I just wanted to talk about a few things that were going on in the program," Bielema said. "I always just go to them for a vote or maybe, 'Hey, do you want this or that,' whatever it is.

"[Winston] was very vocal and gave great leadership comments, so that's when I knew there weren't really any problems."

Bielema and Arkansas defensive coordinator Robb Smith said Winston might play a bigger role today than in recent games against Spread teams because of Alabama's strength as a running team.

"There's going to be some certain instances where they are very heavy run," Smith said. "You'll see JaMichael in the football game and he can really anchor down at what we call our heavy five technique."

Winston said he's looking forward to playing a run-oriented team.

"I've been stopping the run my whole life," he said. "This is more my kind of game. This is what I do."

Sports on 10/10/2015