Razorback Report

Defensive veterans set to lead

Arkansas defensive coordinator Robb Smith directs his players Thursday, March 31, 2016, during practice at the university's practice field on campus in Fayetteville.

FAYETTEVILLE -- The Arkansas defense will have more veterans in positions of leadership in 2015 to add to returning defensive captains Brooks Ellis and JaMichael Winston.

Coach Bret Bielema has touted the more vocal stylings of defensive end Deatrich Wise Jr., who came on strong late last season en route to a team-high eight sacks.

"Not so much a commitment, I just knew everybody was leaving and it was my time to step up and become more of a vocal leader," Wise said. "That's what I was doing, being more of a vocal leader to my teammates.

"There were just some things I saw in the offseason and in the winter, things I needed to improve on, things to get better on to have a great season."

Junior safety Josh Liddell expects to have a stronger voice in the secondary, along with senior cornerbacks Jared Collins and D.J. Dean.

"It's crazy how fast time flies," Liddell said. "I feel confident. I feel ready.

"I'll do everything I can to help the guys under me. I feel I am the leader of the secondary. We're all getting better one by one, not just me. Not just Santos [Ramirez]. We're all getting better as a group. That's the important thing."

Fast Santos

Sophomore Santos Ramirez, who has moved into a starting position at strong safety, said he's ready to put together a great season.

"I'm more experienced, you know," Ramirez said. "I've got the defense down and everything, so I'm able to go out there and play fast. Our defense is looking really great out there.

"Everybody out there has at least one year lettering under them, as far as first string goes, and we're all just playing fast."

Ramirez said he's ready to move into a leadership role alongside free safety Josh Liddell.

"Being with the ones comes with a great deal of responsibility," he said. "I'm a leader out there now. Last year, I was getting my feet wet, but this year I'm coming out strong. I know what I've got to do now. I can play fast, and I can play how I want to play."

Two down

Arkansas' first two workouts Tuesday and Thursday were in helmets and shorts, which is not the preferred gear for the defensive players, who had their first media session Thursday.

"We're doing good," senior linebacker Brooks Ellis said. "We don't have pads on, so it's not what the defense likes to do. But we're flying around, and everybody's improving. We're just working on the fundamentals."

Still got it

Offensive coordinator Dan Enos had fun with the quarterbacks under his direction as he assisted them in throwing passes to receivers and running backs in a fast-moving drill Thursday.

"Oh! Look at that pretty ball!" Enos called out after a pair of tight spirals in a row, perfectly on target.

Enos was a two-year starter at quarterback for Michigan State.

Turn around

Linebacker Brooks Ellis said the return of sophomore Randy Ramsey from a year's suspension because of academics has been welcome.

"He knows this is his chance to do something special, and he can do it," Ellis said. "He's a whole different person than when he first came here. It's awesome to see him back. His attitude is a whole 180-degree turn."

QB ratings

The Razorbacks put more stock last season in a relatively new quarterback rating started by ESPN in 2013, rather than the NCAA's quarterback efficiency rating.

ESPN's total quarterback ratings (QBR) take into account a wide variety of calculations, including passing and running effectiveness, ability to avoid sacks, avoidance of penalties, and quality of passing statistics in regard to down and distance, among others. The QBR is charted on a 1 to 100 scale, which is easier to comprehend than the scale used for NCAA passing efficiency.

In the QBR numbers, Brandon Allen was the NCAA leader last season with a rating of 87.9, one tenth of a point higher than Clemson's DeShaun Watson and Baylor's Seth Russell.

Asked earlier this week about following in his brother's footsteps at Arkansas, Austin Allen remarked, "He led the nation in QBR last year. Why wouldn't you want to duplicate those statistics and the way he led the team? He was a great quarterback for us."

In the NCAA's passer efficiency numbers of 2015, Allen ranked fifth with a 166.5 rating, behind Oregon's Vernon Adams Jr., Western Kentucky's Brandon Doughty, Oklahoma's Baker Mayfield and Stanford's Kevin Hogan.

Extra points

• The Razorbacks will put on pads for the first time this spring Saturday. The 11 a.m. workout at Reynolds Razorback Stadium is not open to the public. It is expected to have at least a moderate amount of scrimmage work.

• Today marks the fourth anniversary of former Arkansas Coach Bobby Petrino's wreck on his Harley-Davidson motorcycle, which led to the discovery of his affair with former Arkansas volleyball player Jessica Dorrell and his ouster April 10, 2012, by Athletic Director Jeff Long.

Sports on 04/01/2016