FAYETTEVILLE -- The University of Arkansas had its first heavy practice of Texas A&M week on Tuesday, working inside the Walker Pavilion on a rainy day while trying to shake off the effects of Saturday's shocking 31-24 loss to San Jose State.
"You've got to get back to work," senior team captain McTelvin Agim said. "That was basically Coach [Chad] Morris' speech today and Sunday. "We've still got eight games left on the schedule. You can't harp on one win, you can't harp on one loss. You've got to basically just flush it and get back to it."
Linebacker De'Jon Harris, also a team captain, said the Razorbacks had prepared for everything San Jose State, a three-touchdown underdog, threw at them.
"We just came out here and played a bad game really," he said. "I was shocked the way we played and how late we responded, because I wasn't expecting it, and I know we weren't expecting it as a program. But like I said, our focus is on Texas A&M. We'll try not to come out flat like that again this weekend."
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Junior linebacker Hayden Henry said defensive coordinator John "Chief" Chavis was fired up at Tuesday's workout.
"He definitely brought a lot more intensity to practice today, you could say," Henry said. "He brought a lot of intensity today, and we're really focusing back on our fundamentals. I think we might have gotten a little lackadaisical last week preparing for the opponent and we're not going to let that happen again."
Sophomore cornerback Jarques McClellion said Chavis, "Just wants us to be great. His mood doesn't change.
"Chief is always the same loving, caring coach and he always yells and screams at us, but it's not in a bad way. As a coach, you sometimes have to raise your voice so we can listen and pay attention. I feel like nothing has changed and he's not being rough on us. He just wants us to be successful because he's seen the work we've put in.
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Personnel report
Cornerback Montaric Brown returned to full practice status for Tuesday's indoor workout, a boost to an Arkansas secondary that was playing light last weekend.
Offensive tackle Colton Jackson, linebacker Bumper Pool and wide receiver Treylon Burks all wore green (no-contact jerseys). Pool played last week with a sore left shoulder, while Burks and Jackson sat out while in concussion protocol. Coach Chad Morris said he expected both Burks and Jackson back for Saturday's 11 a.m. game against Texas A&M.
Receivers De'Vion Warren (concussion protocol) and Trey Knox, who has been in and out of practice with a hip issue, and running back Chase Hayden were out of practice. Hayden returned the second half kickoff 18 yards last week but did not return to action.
Senior running back T.J. Hammonds is available after serving a four-game suspension.
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Team period
Nick Starkel looked sharp during the early team period in the Walker Pavilion, completing 3 of 3 passes during his five-play set.
Starkel completed an out route to Mike Woods, a slant to Tyson Morris and a deep crossing pattern to Cheyenne O'Grady. The first unit did not try a field goal.
Ben Hicks went 2 for 3 while guiding the second unit, then Connor Limpert came on to connect on a long field goal.
Jackson, 5
Left tackle Colton Jackson is expected to be available Saturday but with the left tackle sporting a green (no-contact) jersey Tuesday, the first offensive line on Tuesday was the same unit that started against San Jose State: Myron Cunningham, Austin Capps, Ty Clary, Ricky Stromberg and Dalton Wagner from right to left.
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The second offensive line featured left tackle Brady Latham, left guard Kirby Adcock, center Shane Clenin, right guard Beaux Limmer and right tackle Ryan Winkel.
'Fortnite' screen
Arkansas sophomore cornerback Jarques McClellion had played in AT&T Stadium once before last year's game against Texas A&M, at an all-star game between Team USA and Team Canada a few years back.
"First time coming in, they kept telling you about the jumbo screen and I didn't listen to them and didn't pay attention to them," McClellion said. "Like, I've seen jumbo screens before. Then I looked at it and was like, 'Wow, this is kind of big. I would like to play Fortnite on this screen.' It was a great experience.
"I met Dez Bryant and it was a wonderful experience down there. It's something I can't forget."
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Quick game
Arkansas struggled to get pressure on San Jose State quarterback Josh Love, who was sacked just once.
"It was a lot of quick game," defensive tackle McTelvin Agim said. "I don't know what the average span of the ball from the snap to the release was, but I feel like the average had to be under three seconds for sure."
300 by 3
Arkansas has passed for 300-plus yards in three consecutive games for the first time since the 2011 team when quarterback Tyler Wilson did it.
Nick Starkel (201 yards), Ben Hicks (98) and Rakeem Boyd (1) combined to pass for 300 yards in the 31-17 loss at Ole Miss on Sept. 7. Starkel passed for 305 yards in a 55-34 victory over Colorado State on Sept. 14, and Starkel passed for 356 yards in last week's 34-21 loss to San Jose State.
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Underdog Hogs
Texas A&M is a 23-point favorite against Arkansas, which was a 20 1/2-point favorite over San Jose State.
"As a team we don't worry about social media or point spreads," Arkansas cornerback Jarques McClellion said. "We know coming into this game, it's always something crazy. Going to overtime and stuff like that. We've just to play our hearts out and make sure we do our jobs, and maybe it might come out in our favor."
Old rivals
Texas A&M is the second-most played opponent for the Razorbacks behind Texas with 75 meetings. Barring bowl meetings against the Longhorns, the Arkansas-Texas A&M series will surpass the Arkansas-Texas series in 2023 with the 80th game. The Razorbacks and Longhorns have played 78 times but are scheduled for meeting No. 79 in Fayetteville on Sept. 11, 2021.
Arkansas leads the series with the Aggies by a 41-31-3 count, but its dominance was more pronounced during their days in the Southwest Conference.
The Aggies have won seven consecutive games in the series, all since joining the SEC in 2012. Arkansas reeled off a three-game winning streak from 2009-11 after the series was revived as the Southwest Classic at AT&T Stadium (formerly Cowboys Stadium) in Arlington, Texas.
Texas A&M leads the series 5-3 in games played at AT&T Stadium.
Extra points
• The Razorbacks are the designated home team for Saturday, as they've been in the odd-numbered years since the Southwest Classic was created in 2009.
• Texas A&M's Braden Mann hit a 68-yard punt last week vs. Auburn, giving him 16 punts of 60-plus yards in his decorated career.
• The ESPN announcing team assigned to the Arkansas-Texas A&M game is Mark Jones on play by play, Dusty Dvoracek as analyst and Olivia Dekker as the sideline reporter.
Sports on 09/25/2019