Hogs may split up middle man duties
FAYETTEVILLE — Sophomore Khalia Hackett and freshman Josh Harris have split first-team reps at middle linebacker almost down the middle for the Arkansas Razorbacks in the run up to next Saturday’s season opener against Texas-El Paso.
The two might share snaps at the spot all season long.
Hackett, a standout special teams player as a true freshman last year, is two seasons removed from playing safety in high school. The 6-2, 230-pounder made the move from strong side linebacker to the middle about midway through spring drills.
Harris, a walk-on from Pine Bluff who redshirted last season, isn’t typical middle linebacker size at 5-10, 220 pounds, but the son of former NFL tight end Jackie Harris always seems to make tackles and be around the play when the Razorbacks scrimmage.
“They both have some really good qualities,” Arkansas Coach Bret Bielema said. “If you combined the two, we would have one great player. But I really think the competition is good.”
Linebackers coach Vernon
Hargreaves has two firmly entrenched starters in juniors Brooks Ellis on the weak side and Josh Williams on the strong side.
Ellis ranked second on the team with 72 tackles from the middle linebacker spot, but defensive coaches prefer him at weak side linebacker, the position where Arkansas tries to push many run plays and where Martrell Spaight made an SEC-best 126 tackles last fall.
“We want to leave that alone and try to let him figure that thing out there and be that guy,” Hargreaves said. “Hopefully we can find that [middle] linebacker to be a stellar force for us out there and let Brooksie go and do what he’s been doing.”
Hargreaves recognized last week that Harris shows up repeatedly near the top of the tackle chart.
“That’s all that matters,” Hargreaves said. “At the end of the day, I would love to have a 6-3, 240-pound guy there and doing the same thing he’s doing. Well, as long as it gets done, who cares what it looks like?
“I want a guy there that can get us lined up and make the plays he is supposed to make. If he can get that done, then shoot, what’s the problem?”
Bielema said Harris has looked strong against offenses that feature a fullback, sometimes using his height to dip behind teammates before showing up in the hole.
“I think Josh overall has a really good nose for the ball and is very stout,” Bielema said. “The only thing I worry about with him is getting overwhelmed at times in the middle.”
Hackett opened camp as the starter, but Harris passed him when Hackett struggled to recognize and react to certain cues from offensive linemen in the first scrimmage. The two shared time with the starters in the second scrimmage.
“Khalia is a very good athlete,” Bielema said. “The good news is Khalia had a lot better Week 2 than he had in Week 1, which is good for all of us.”
Bielema, a former linebackers coach, suggested the training staff run a line of tape down the middle of Hackett’s helmet to show him on tape where his eyes were looking.
“It’s great to have a head coach that’s a former linebackers coach who really understands the technical aspect of things,” defensive coordinator Robb Smith said. “Just to make sure Khalia’s eyes are in the right place, I think that [the tape] has really helped him. It’s been a great teaching tool for us.”
Hackett and Williams are battling for time at the second linebacker spot with Ellis when the Razorbacks go to their “nickel” package.
Hargreaves said this week that the defense expected to use traditional three-linebacker sets with some frequency in the opener, but because opponents after that utilize more spread sets the Razorbacks would be running more of their “nickel” and “cash” schemes with fewer linebackers and more defensive backs.
Like Hackett, true freshman Dre Greenlaw was a high school defensive back. His transition to linebacker, as a second-teamer behind Ellis, has progressed quickly.
“He’s been a pleasant surprise,” Hargreaves said. “There are guys that take to it very well, kind of like Greenlaw, and there are other guys that take a little bit of time trying to figure the whole thing out.”
Bielema sounded impressed with Greenlaw at a news conference.
“Dre Greenlaw will play, without a doubt,” he said. “He is very, very incorporated, not only in our defense but in special teams.”
Sophomore Dwayne Eugene, who worked on the weak side much of last season, is also training behind Williams and should be a versatile reserve.
The competition for playing time at middle linebacker has been a lengthy focus of the Razorbacks’ preparations.
“Josh has always been a linebacker, and that helps,” Hargreaves said. “A year from now [Hackett] will have it down and there will be a great battle.”