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Hogs ease up in face of another long scrimmage Published: Saturday, April 19, 2008 PRINT E-MAIL Absolutely you can watch the Razorbacks' 10: 30 a.m. football scrimmage today and still make it to John McDonnell Field for the 4 p.m. start to running event finals at the John McDonnell Invitational Outdoor track meet. You might even be able to make it to the 2 p.m. Arkansas-Tennessee baseball game today at Baum Stadium. Just kidding. You should be able to make it for the 2 p.m. first pitch, too - though maybe just barely. The 164-play scrimmage that head coach Bobby Petrino put the Razorbacks through last weekend apparently won't be any shorter when Arkansas scrimmages this morning. " Hopefully it will be as long, " offensive coordinator / receivers coach Paul Petrino said after the Razorbacks practiced Friday afternoon. " Maybe longer. "
It's going to be long enough and tough enough that Bobby Petrino had the Razorbacks practicing just in shoulder pads and shorts Friday, tapering for what will be an important test for both sides of the ball, Paul Petrino and defensive coordinator Willy Robinson both said. " Tomorrow will be a big day for the depth chart, " Paul Petrino said Friday. " See where we are going into the next week for the spring game. There will be a lot on it tomorrow when we grade that scrimmage. " Arkansas winds up spring drills with next Saturday's 6 p.m. Red-White game at Reynolds Razorback Stadium. Robinson talked about the consistency, effort and execution the defensive staff seeks to evaluate today. Cornerbacks coach Lorenzo Ward said every practice this week aimed toward today's scrimmage. " Every scrimmage is a test, " Ward said. " When we're practicing, we're getting ready for the test. So it's big for all the players. " New coaches Robinson, who specifically coaches the safeties, and Ward certainly have been tested this spring starting from scratch with a secondary graduating every starter who played for former Arkansas coach Houston Nutt's 2007 Razorbacks. " It's just like making a pizza, " Ward said. " You've got to fit the slices together and that's what we've got to do. " Ward had a different ingredient at a first-team slice Friday. Senior first-team cornerback Jamar Love was withheld because of a bruised quadriceps. So Darrel Glasper, a former LSU walk-on from Baton Rouge, La., who sat out last season as a redshirting transfer, worked at firstteam corner and presumably will scrimmage there today should Love still ail. Glasper is only 5-8, 180 but making a big impression picking off passes and tackling more like a big safety than a little corner. " He's been a good surprise, " Ward said. " He's played a lot bigger than he is. I've been impressed with his skills and being physical against the run. He's made some good open-field tackles. He's stepped his game up. " All Glasper has ever sought at Arkansas is a change of scenery and a chance. " I didn't really like it in Baton Rouge, " Glasper said. " I'm from there and I saw the depth chart up here and I wanted to come make a difference because I thought I could play on this level. " Opening spring drills at first-team left offensive tackle but then supplanted by junior Michael Aguirre, senior Jose Valdez is operating with the first unit again. Valdez was the starting tackle last year until a midseason moved that shifted graduated 2007 senior Robert Felton from guard to tackle with current sophomore DeMarcus Love moving in as a starting guard. Love has held that first-team job with the new regime. Coaches from all over the country have flocked to Arkansas to watch spring drills back from Frank Broyles coaching the Hogs in 1950 s, ' 60 s and'70 s through all his coaching successors. However Friday may have been the first staff visit from another country. Coach Jacinto Licea and his staff from the National Polytechnic Institute in Mexico City took in Friday's practice and will watch today's scrimmage. National Polytechnic is an 11-team conference of Mexican colleges playing American football, Licea said, and years ago played eight home and homes with the University of Houston freshman team. Licea says he's long known Arkansas offensive line coach Mike Summers who also coached the offensive line for Bobby Petrino at the University of Louisville and last year in the NFL with the Atlanta Falcons. " I've known Mike Summers for many years, " Licea said. " Mike Summers is a fine person. Every year we come to the United States to learn new techniques. I saw Louisville on TV and was impressed with their dynamics and speed. I called Mike and we went to Louisville and then to Atlanta and then come back here. " More Stories From: NATE ALLEN · UAs Johnson is SEC Freshman of the Week · UA BASKETBALL : UAs Clarke aiming to bust Texas Southerns 3-2 zone · Standing tall Washington's double-double powers Hoop Hogs past FAMU · Hogs return to Walton Arena to face FAMU · Another Markham miracle HOGS RALLY FROM 16POINT DEFICIT TO UPSET LSU Yesterday's Most Popular 2. Dicks game-winning pass a nominee for weekly Pontiac award 3. SEC lists 39 former players on NBA rosters 4. SEC MEN : Gonzaga fends off late Tennessee rally 5. LadyBacks swat Pacific at tourney in Bahamas Today's Most E-mailed |
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