1st Morris UA spring gets going
FAYETTEVILLE — Today’s the day the full-tilt boogie meets the practice field for the Arkansas Razorbacks.
First-year University of Arkansas, Fayetteville Coach Chad Morris has pushed his pedal-to-themetal philosophy in meetings, winter workouts, fan engagements and pep talks, but now it will get a fullfield implementation on the first day of 2018 spring drills.
“Are we going to be perfect tomorrow, no way,” Morris said in his pre-spring news conference Wednesday. “I hope what it looks like on April 7 looks completely different than what it looks like tomorrow.
It’s a process in that regard.”
Morris said the players have had “install” books for the last couple of weeks and that a large number of players have gone to the Fred W. Smith Football Center to look at video cut-ups showing how the systems will operate.
“I think you’ll come out tomorrow and see the same thing I saw when I got here,” Morris said. “You’ll see a hunger level. These guys are hungry now. Let me tell you, they’re working their tail off and they’re extremely hungry. I know the disappointment from last season and all that has just
been in that rearview mirror so to speak to remind them, but they’re hungry. They hear it.”
Today’s workout in shorts and helmets will be the first of 15 in spring drills for a program that is coming off a 4-8 season that led to the firing of Bret Bielema.
Morris said sophomore Cole Kelley would start out with the first unit on offense and that the snaps would generally be split 4-4-2 for the quarterbacks.
“Cole will start off getting our first reps,” he said. “We call it a rack, the first rack. From there, Daulton [Hyatt] will get in and we’ll rotate those guys through. … Is there a definite starter? Absolutely not.
“So one practice we may have this guy getting the first rack in this five-minute segment. The next five-minute segment, we may have somebody else getting the first rack.”
Morris outlined three key items he wanted to accomplish in the spring: creating depth, identifying the best 11 players on offense, defense and special teams; and installing a one-play warrior mentality.
“That’s really it,” Morris said. “I’m not asking a guy to go out there and play 80 snaps. I’m asking a guy to go play one play 80 times. Or one play 40 times. If a guy’s a 35-play-a-game guy and that’s all he’s gonna get, we need one play 35 times.”
Senior receiver Jared Cornelius, who is returning from surgery to repair a torn Achilles tendon, said offensive coordinator Joe Craddock has been spreading the philosophy for his unit.
“What he wants to do is get the ball out quick to his playmakers,” Cornelius said. “It’s as simple as that. As many playmakers as we have on the field, we’re going to try to spread it around. That’s from running, throwing, tunnel screens, throwing it deep. We’re going to take shots every now and then. But the big thing is moving fast and moving explosively.”
Numerous key contributors are returning from season-ending injuries or nagging problems.
Top cornerback Ryan Pulley was lost in the season opener with a torn pectoral muscle, just like Kevin Richardson the season before. Cornelius was hurt on the first play of the second half in the third game against Texas A&M and missed the rest of the year.
Freshman tailback Chase Hayden, who had 326 rushing yards and 4 touchdowns
and was averaging 5.3 yards per carry, was gone after suffering a foot injury against Auburn on Oct. 21.
Kelley, who passed for 1,038 yards, with 8 touchdowns and 4 interceptions and led the team to a 2-2 record while Austin Allen rehabbed a shoulder injury, had a turf toe issue late in the year, but he’s fully recovered.
Cornelius said he’s nearing 100 percent and will be cleared for some, but not all work.
Morris has made it clear no starting position is safe.
However, there will be veteran components at many position groups, as the Razorbacks return nine starters on offense and seven on defense.
Three of the team’s top four rushers are back in
Devwah Whaley (127 carries, 559 yards, 7 TDs), Hayden (61-326, 4) and T.J. Hammonds (32-262, 1).
The top six pass catchers return, led by Jonathan Nance (37 catches, 539 yards, 5 TDs), Deon Stewart (33-404, 3), Jordan Jones (21-401, 3) and Cheyenne O’Grady (21-132, 2). All told, players who accounted for 182 of the team’s 192 receptions and 16 of its 18 touchdowns are returning.
The offensive front took a major blow with the loss of centers Frank Ragnow and Zach Rogers, but the other four starters return in seniors Hjalte Froholdt, Johnny Gibson and Brian Wallace and junior Colton Jackson.
Defensively, the nucleus at linebacker looks strong with De’Jon Harris and Dre Greenlaw back, along with
Randy Ramsey, who is likely to get a look at edge rusher in the return to a base 4-3 after one year in a 3-4 set.
On the front, starters McTelvin Agim and T.J. Smith return,while Pulley, senior safety Santos Ramirez, a team captain in 2017, and sophomore cornerback Kamren Curl return in the secondary.
Morris said Richardson’s
eligibility remains under review as the program is looking into getting the defensive back and team captain a sixth year of eligibility.
From a special teams standpoint, SEC All-Freshman kick returner DeVion Warren, kicker Connor Limpert, punter Blake Johnson and holder Reid Miller are back.