FAYETTEVILLE — Shaking the rust off after a 12-day break in spring drills will be the first order of business for the Arkansas Razorbacks’ football team today.
The University of Arkansas resumed classes following Spring Break on Monday, and third-year Coach Sam Pittman elected to have the team practice on the Wednesday before the break and evaluate the tape from that practice before departing for the extended time off.
The Razorbacks will undergo their fourth spring practice today, then put on full pads for Thursday’s practice.
The team has been working inside Reynolds Razorback Stadium, unlike last year’s spring drills.
From now until the end of the 15 workouts of spring, the Razorbacks are scheduled to practice on Tuesdays, Thursdays and Saturdays, with a couple of major scrimmages penciled in.
Of note today will be the status of a few injured players, like junior center Ricky Stromberg, who had a knee issue in workout No. 2 on March 15 that was not expected to sideline him for long.
Transfer receiver Jadon Haselwood, a former 5-star recruit who transferred from Oklahoma, showed his toughness by fighting through a shoulder issue he suffered on March 15.
Haselwood is one of several wideouts looking to become a top target for quarterback KJ Jefferson following the departure of junior Treylon Burks, an early declarer for the NFL Draft.
Additionally, the Razorbacks had a flu bug go through the team during the first week of spring drills, so the depth chart is expected to be better stocked with the resumption of practices.
The Razorbacks worked almost exclusively with three-man defensive fronts through the first week of drills and continue to experiment with ways to amp up the pass rush.
The defense won more battles in team periods in spring practice No. 3 than the offense.
Pittman has touted the early work of defensive line coach Deke Adams and cornerbacks coach Dominque Bowman, the two new members of the staff.
“I think we’ve gotten much better on the D-line with intensity, hand placement,” Pittman said March 16. “Linebackers, you have Bumper [Pool] there, but I think we found something with Drew Sanders and [Christopher] ‘Pooh’ Paul. I love Jordan Crook. I think he’s going to be a player for us.
"Secondary wise, I think our kids have really taken to Coach Bowman.”