ANDY SHUPE Northwest Arkansas Times Fayetteville sophomore receiver Demetrius Dean recorded five catches for 96 yards and three touchdowns in the Dogs ’ loss Friday to Fort Smith Northside.

John Pelphrey has no illusions about what lies ahead. After the departure of seven players from last season’s nine-man rotation, the Arkansas Razorbacks’ second-year head coach said the 2008-09 campaign will be different from his first year on the job.

“ Make no mistake about it, this is rebuilding, ” Pelphrey said Monday during the Razorbacks media day at Bud Walton Arena. “ You don’t lose that many guys from any organization and there not be some transition from one year to the next. ”

Pelphrey inherited a senior-laden team when he was hired in April 2007. Those players formed the nucleus of the 2007-08 squad that compiled a 23-12 record en route to a second-consecutive berth in the NCAA Tournament. They represented more than 87 percent of the scoring, 78 percent of the rebounding and 79 percent of the team’s assist total.

Though the lion’s share of production from last year is gone, Pelphrey heads into the upcoming season undaunted. Arkansas opens play in earnest Friday, Nov. 14 against Southeastern Louisiana at Bud Walton, one of 19 home dates on the Razorbacks’ schedule.

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“ Losing the top seven guys, basically 80 percent of any category you want to talk about on the stat sheet, ” he said. “ With all that being said, the guys we’ve got in the program, with work ethic, understanding of team, being able to sacrifice and being willing to commit yourself to winning, I still believe we can compete and win with anybody on our schedule. The goals and expectations at the University of Arkansas haven’t changed. ”

A highly-regarded 2008 recruiting class is tasked with offsetting the loss in production. Newcomers Andre Clark (6-9 forward ), Rotnei Clarke (6-0 guard ), Courtney Fortson (5-11 guard ), Jason Henry (6-6 forward ), Montrell McDonald (6-5 forward, junior college transfer ) and Brandon Moore (6-9 forward ) were rated as the No. 16 recruiting class by the scouting service Rivals. com.

Other services were more generous. ESPN. com rated Arkansas ’ six-man class as the 11 th best in the country, and CBSSports. com ranked it as the 13 th best. Pelphrey said the rankings provide fodder for fan discussions, but he doesn’t attribute much significance to them.

“ We’re not the most talented team in the country, and we’re probably not the worst, ” he said. “ We’re going to have to wait and see. I know a lot has been made of our recruiting class, and I don’t really get too caught up in that in terms of rankings and those types of things. Certainly they’re nice. They’re great for our fans. ”

Pelphrey said he hopes those rankings will have borne out by the time the class has departed. He won’t have a true assessment of its value until then.

“ Probably a more realistic ranking of a recruiting class would be how many games they win after they got done, ” he said. “ To be able to say how much talent we’ve got or how good these guys really are, I think that’s going to come out in the wash.

“ I like it. We’re certainly very excited about that. I think everyone is going to work hard to get better. I think they genuinely have an affection for the Razorbacks. ”

With the return of junior point guard Stefan Welsh, the leading scorer back from last season (5. 3 ppg. ), and the addition of Fortson and Clarke, Pelphrey said the Razorbacks’ back-court depth is improved. He called Fortson, who averaged 25 points, 7 assists and 6 steals last year at the Patterson School in Lenoir, N. C., a “ tough, nasty, hard-nosed point guard. ”

Fortson said those attributes will speed his transition to college basketball.

“ I’m mostly excited about the chance to play for Arkansas and be a Razorback, to be on the court and see 20, 000 screaming fans, ” he said. “ I’m a hard-nosed player with a lot of athleticism and a lot of defense. ”

Clarke comes to Arkansas with a reputation as one of the best 3-point shooters in the entire 2008 class. He averaged 40. 9 points per game last year at Verdigris High in Claremore, Okla., and broke every scoring record in the state.

The Oklahoma deadeye said he sharpened his aim with practice, making 500 3-pointers a day. Clarke said he won’t be able to maintain that regimen in college. The heavy practice and conditioning schedule will curtail his shooting work.

“ The coaches have been telling me I need to rest my body, ” Clarke said. “ I’m always going to go non-stop in the gym, but I’ve learned how to rest my body. ”

For tson said Clarke’s shooting form never changes, even when fatigue takes hold. While Clarke doesn’t exude athleticism, Fortson said appearances are deceiving.

“ Coming in as a freshman, he can shoot it, ” Fortson said. “ Even when he’s tired, he still shoots the same, keeps his follow through going. I think he’s a much better defender than people think he is. He’s underrated as a defender. ”

Junior Michael Washington is the lone player with experience on Arkansas’ front line and the leading returning rebounder (3. 9 rpg ). Bulking up to 240 pounds, Washington said he’ll be able to be more physical this year. He’ll also exert more leadership, taking his cues from last year’s seniors.

“ If feels different, but it’s kind of fun, ” Washington said of his new role. “ I learned from the guys on last year’s team how to lead. ”