FAYETTEVILLE -- Arkansas Razorbacks Coach Bret Bielema said he sent in 10 or 11 plays for the SEC office to review after his team's 50-43 loss in overtime against Texas A&M last week.
Bielema said he typically sends in between four and 15 plays each week "sometimes just for clarification," and he went out of his way to praise the work of referee John McDaid and his crew.
"I think there's just a couple of things that we just want clarity ... on so we can move forward," Bielema said. "Unfortunately, there was a lot of flags or nonflags that came on critical drives or scoring plays. Those are always difficult to deal with."
Bielema did not give a rundown of the plays Arkansas sent in, but a third-and-8 pass interference call against freshman cornerback Kamren Curl on a pass thrown well short of a receiver in overtime -- which led to an automatic first down and a Texas A&M touchdown -- was one of them.
Bielema was asked whether he thought tight end Cheyenne O'Grady was interfered with on the Razorbacks' final play, which resulted in a diving interception by safety Armani Watts.
"A lot of people have asked about that one," Bielema said. "We get handsy too, but again, it's those scoring or nonscoring plays that were big parts of the game."
On Jared
Arkansas receivers coach Michael Smith said senior Jared Cornelius will attack his rehabilitation from a torn Achilles tendon injury, just as he has with previous injuries like a broken arm, a tweaked knee and hamstring, and back issues.
"He's disappointed that he has to go through this again, but he's been through it and he knows what he has to do to rehab and get back to where he wants to be and put himself in position to go to the next level," Smith said.
Cornelius had successful surgery on his Achilles on Monday.
Smith said the senior has options.
"We've kind of thrown stuff out there, but that's going to be something we take the next couple months to see where he is," Smith said. "This is a long rehab process with a torn Achilles, but he does have another year.
"I mean, if we can petition for him to get another year, I'm sure he'd be interested in it, but I don't want to speak for J-Red right now because I don't know. We haven't really had that discussion yet."
Injury report
Running backs coach Reggie Mitchell said sophomore tailback Devwah Whaley was back to 100 percent at practice Tuesday.
Whaley, who had a sore ankle during the open week and last week, was limited to six carries for 38 yards against Texas A&M. His 6.3 yards per carry edged out fellow tailbacks David Williams (6.2) and Chase Hayden (5.9), who combined to rush for 145 yards and 3 touchdowns on 24 carries.
"Today was probably the first time in a couple of weeks -- you know he had the back and then he had the ankle -- that he was able to go through a full practice, so he's on the mend," Mitchell said.
Martin's time?
Brandon Martin came to the University of Arkansas, Fayetteville in the spring as the nation's No. 1 junior college receiver, but he has yet to make a catch.
Back and hamstring injuries have limited Martin in practice, and he played sparingly in the season opener.
Martin didn't travel to the Texas A&M game last week, but he practiced Tuesday.
Receivers coach Michael Smith hopes Martin can stay healthy and be included in the game plan.
"You get discouraged as a player when you have injuries," Smith said. "But he's trying to battle through it, he's going to treatment, he practiced today and looked fine. Now it's just getting him to get this game plan down to a point where when he walks out across that white line, he can go out and execute."
Quarterback Austin Allen said Martin can be an impact player.
"Brandon Martin needs to get things going," Allen said. "He's a guy that needs to be on the field. He's 6-4, 230, and he can run and catch."
Allen rebound
Quarterback Austin Allen played an "outstanding" game against Texas A&M, according to offensive coordinator Dan Enos, after struggling in the Hogs' 28-7 loss to TCU.
Allen completed 12 of 25 passes for 229 yards, with 2 touchdowns and 1 interception in the 50-43 loss to the Aggies.
"I thought he made big-time throws at big-time moments," Enos said. "He got hit several times and made very, very accurate throws."
Enos said the minuses on Allen's grade involved pocket posture and not stepping up on a few pass plays. Allen was sacked six times and threw an interception over the middle in the end zone on the final play of overtime.
"To really be honest with you, on the play at the end of the game he should have checked the ball down, as he'll tell you," Enos said. "But shoot, other than that, the post he threw for a touchdown is as good a throw as I've seen. He made some plays on third down.
"I thought with our screen game he did an outstanding job of drawing the rush toward him and giving guys an extra tick or two to get loose and find space so he could get the ball to them for a big gain."
Allen pushed his career passing total to 4,120 yards to become the 12th Arkansas quarterback to reach the 4,000-yard mark.
"I feel like I just went out there and played," Allen said. "Didn't let the moment get too big."
Tube talk
The Razorbacks' road game at South Carolina on Oct. 7 will kick off at 3 p.m. Central and will be broadcast on the SEC Network, the league office announced.
Arkansas last played at South Carolina in 2012, falling 38-20 under interim coach John L. Smith. Under the SEC's unbalanced crossover scheduling, Arkansas has not played at Kentucky (last game 2008), Georgia (2010) or Vanderbilt (2011) since making its last trip to South Carolina.
Arkansas will play at Kentucky in 2019, at Georgia in 2021 and at Vanderbilt in 2025. The Commodores play at Arkansas in 2018, while Kentucky comes to Arkansas in 2024.
Kirk wins
Texas A&M receiver and return specialist Christian Kirk was named SEC Special Teams Player of the Week after his showing against Arkansas.
Kirk had three kickoff returns for 136 yards, including a 100-yard touchdown late in the game to give the Aggies a 40-36 lead. His performance also included a career-long 81-yard touchdown among his two scoring catches.
Extra points
• Quarterback Austin Allen has thrown a touchdown pass in 15 of 16 career starts.
• Arkansas is 10-2 when scoring 40-plus points since coordinator Dan Enos' arrival in 2015. The losses came last week against Texas A&M and in a 51-50 loss to Mississippi State in 2015.
• New Mexico State safety Shamad Lomax is this week's Sun Belt Defensive Player of the Week after he had three interceptions, including a 19-yard return for a touchdown, and nine tackles in a 41-14 victory over UTEP.
• Former Heisman Trophy winner Andre Ware will handle the color commentary, while Taylor Zarzour will do play by play and Olivia Harlan the sideline reporting for the SEC Network coverage Saturday.
Sports on 09/27/2017