FAYETTEVILLE -- Arkansas Coach Bret Bielema said his team needs to catch a break as it tries to fight back from its 1-2 start heading into SEC play on Saturday against No. 14 Texas A&M.
Asked if he could put a finger on what has impacted the Razorbacks outside of a big run of injuries to skill players, Bielema said, "You know, what we're trying to get is a ball to bounce the right way, maybe a call here or there that will go our way.
"There are certain things you're just sitting there waiting, and you think they're going to happen."
After Arkansas' 16-12 loss to Toledo, Bielema and other coaches pointed out more than a handful of plays that could have turned the game but didn't, many in the offensive red zone and a couple on special teams.
Against Toledo and Texas Tech, the Arkansas defense did not force a fumble and struggled to get off the field on third downs.
"I think about last year," Bielema said. "I was going back and I just pulled the stat sheets from Ole Miss and LSU in particular, and the thing that began to swing our way was turnovers, or we get an occasional call here or there from the officiating crew and kind of just changed the outlook and the feeling and then it really had a huge effect overall."
Personnel report
Bret Bielema said Wednesday that running back Kody Walker, whose left arm was in a sling Saturday, might be able to participate this weekend.
"Kody practiced yesterday and is still a little bit sore with that hand, but I think he's going to be able to help us in some fashion as we move forward," Bielema said.
Linebacker Josh Williams, who logged one special teams tackle last weekend, and receiver/kickoff returner Eric Hawkins have been "100 percent" cleared to play, Bielema added.
For Texas A&M, running back James White and linebacker Josh Walker, who suffered undisclosed injuries in the opener against Arizona State, are questionable.
Aggies defensive lineman Julien Obioha returned from appendicitis last week, while linebacker A.J. Hilliard and defensive tackle Jaycoven Henderson returned from suspension.
Stick moves
Defensive backs coach Clay Jennings said better tackling against Texas A&M will loom large after Texas Tech slipped numerous tackles last week.
"There were probably about three or four third downs where we had them dead to rights, as far as before the sticks," Jennings said. "We've got to bring our arms in tackling. We've got to put our bodies on guys. We've got to get back to who we are as far as embracing the contact and utilizing our tackling system. "
No crutch
Bret Bielema said while the epidemic of injuries to Arkansas' skill players is basically unprecedented in his memory, he will not use it to explain the team's 1-2 start.
"I can't use it as a crutch. I can't use it as an excuse," Bielema said. "If I did, with the temperament of everybody right now, holy heavens. They could be coming after me with gangbusters, so it just is what it is."
Cast call
Junior cornerback Jared Collins intercepted a deep pass last week while wearing a cast on his right hand.
"It didn't mess me up too much," Collins said. "I've been practicing in it, so that's helped a lot."
Bret Bielema said Collins suffered a separated thumb in the Toledo game.
Collins thinks his tackling must improve.
"This cast, getting used to it has really been kind of tough for me, just in tackling," he said. "I've been kind of cautious about it. I just need to work on that."
Blunt Bret
A reporter on Wednesday's SEC coaches teleconference asked Bret Bielema a couple of questions about whether he might revisit his tendency to shoot from the hip with his comments.
"Obviously at times, in today's world, people try to piece things together and it can be interpreted the wrong way and can be used in any way that somebody kind of wants to spin it when you start going half-quotes and all that jazz," Bielema said.
"If you know me over the course of time, I have spoken my mind about what I believe in and how I feel, but on the same account, I do not want to draw any negativity to not only our program, but our university, or anything like that. I'm just going to go water under the bridge as we move forward.
"When you win games, everybody kind of puts them in a perspective of being positive, and when you lose, everybody spins them as a negative. So it's just the world we live in."
Not there
Arkansas Athletic Director Jeff Long and Bret Bielema referenced how the program isn't exactly where it needs to be yet, despite the team's preseason rankings and higher expectations.
"We all want it to be here faster than it's coming, but I knew that every game was going to be a battle," Bielema said. "I mean, over the history of my career we've had very good success in non-conference. Not that you take it for granted, and you knew that you were going to have your work cut out for you because we're just not there yet."
Long, who said in Little Rock on Monday that Arkansas was "ahead of schedule," clarified those remarks in his appearance Wednesday at the Northwest Arkansas Touchdown Club.
"What I was intending to say was that after last season, when we beat Texas and beat them badly in the bowl game, I didn't think we were going to be in a bowl game," Long said. "The third year was what I was counting on. Now we're 1-2, but we have nine games to prove where we are."
Long added he was surprised by the team's record.
"I thought we'd be sitting here at 3-0," he said. "I thought our team had evolved, but we have not. We have more work to do, and nobody is going to work harder than Bret and his staff improving our student-athletes."
Denver dinged
Offensive tackle Denver Kirkland, who was a game-day decision Saturday after suffering an arm injury, went the distance against Texas Tech with a wrap on his right shoulder.
"I'm feeling good," Kirkland said. "It was just a little nick. I just have to do what I've got to do to sacrifice myself for the team. Just have to make the team better and try to win."
Bears in '20?
Arkansas Athletic Director Jeff Long said the Razorbacks have had numerous conversations with schools and venues about playing a marquee neutral site game in 2020, including a discussion about playing Baylor in Houston.
"We've had conversations with a dozen or more teams about 2020, because with that Texas game being played in 2021, we have an opening in 2020," Long said after speaking at the Northwest Arkansas Touchdown Club. "We're looking at that for a neutral site game, but that's only one of the spots we're looking at."
Long said Houston, Kansas City and Orlando, Fla., have all been discussed as cities where Arkansas might play a marquee game.
Staying positive
Defensive tackle Taiwan Johnson said the Razorbacks have to be resilient against Texas A&M after losing two.
"We've gone through some tough times these past two weeks and we've got to get back to winning ball," Johnson said. "We've got to do whatever it takes to win. We can't let the last two weeks affect the rest of the season.
"I think everyone on our team understands that. I've been here a while at Arkansas, and I've seen that if you just let things keep piling up, it can get bad."
Johnson said how the Razorbacks rallied late last season to win three of their final four games is a positive to draw on for the start of SEC play.
"We were struggling and we turned it around and started playing great ball," he said. "I think the example that the older leaders set, we can use that to help us moving forward."
Sports on 09/24/2015