re: 2015 Spring Practice Thread

quote:

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Brooks is actually ahead of where Martrell was here at this time last year."

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I'm still not sold on Williams at Mike but this gives me the faps.

That kid can't catch a break. Basically three straight seasons of football will be missed due to ACL tears.

When you're grinding you don't even hear that shite

Bert is still fat

This is why our local media drives me crazy. From "Ugly Uncle's" practice report:

I can't say enough about the change in atmosphere when it comes to taking care of the media. When we signed in today (which is something kind of new) they handed us a full roster sheet. They haven't done that for years. Then after practice they handed us a program/book thing called 2015 SPRING PROSPECTUS. It is a smaller version of the media guide we get in the fall. Now, if they will just open up the practices to us a little more everything would be GREAT.


That thing has been out for weeks and he's just now seeing it and acting like it's something ground breaking.

Calling Ugly Uncle "media" is a bit of a stretch.

247 practice report from Dalton Person:

Arkansas hosted its fourth practice for the spring on Tuesday, and it was the first day the media were allowed inside. Here's five observations from the day.
New coaches making themselves known
This was the first chance to see new offensive coordinator Dan Enos, running backs coach Jemal Singleton, and linebackers coach Vernon Hargreaves in action. Enos presents a stark shift in practice from previous offensive coordinator Jim Chaney.

For the day, Enos was very active with his offensive players, regardless of the position. In the past, Chaney spent considerable time just with the quarterbacks, but Enos communicated with every position group on his offense. He was loud, energetic, and constantly coaching. Under Enos, the offense will certainly push the tempo throughout practice.

Singleton brought a reputation from Oklahoma State of preaching ball security. That was on full display today, as he had his guys go through numerous ball security drills, one involving a football with a strong attached that he would pull and another involved a boxing club attached to an extended PVC pipe that he would poke the backs with.

As for Hargreaves, second year players at Arkansas Khalia Hackett, Josh Williams, and Randy Ramsey really had good days today. They all attributed Hargreaves with being relatable and a great coach.

Quarterback controversy?

Returning starter Brandon Allen looked very composed in the pocket today and should retain the starting quarterback start with ease. Behind him, though, there appears to be three quality quarterbacks who all logged strong reps on Tuesday. Austin Allen, Rafe Peavey, and Ty Storey give the Hogs good depth at the position. I was particularly surprised with the performance of Storey, who looked comfortable under center in just his fourth practice with the Razorbacks. Storey took more reps than either of the other two back-ups and connected on all the throws he was expected to. Don't be surprised if there's a battle for the No. 2 spot from now until the season begins.

Changes on the OL

In typical Sam Pittman fashion, the offensive line has played musical chairs this spring. Frank Ragnow has moved out to the No. 1 spot at right guard, and looked good there today with some added weight. Mitch Smothers took all of the first team reps at center and looked better in individual drills then he has in the past, but still needs some work in team drills. The most notable change is big Denver Kirkland moving out to left tackle from right guard with Dan Skipper making the switch from left to right tackle. Kirkland looks more agile and conditioned than he did last spring, which should suit him well out in space at tackle. With Sebastian Tretola at left guard, the left side of the offensive line has a lot of meat. Those two today looked great in run blocking but still need some improvement in the passing game.
In the second group, freshmen Zach Rogers, Josh Allen, and Jalen Merrick made up the entire left side with Rogers at center. Rogers moved very well following his injury his senior season of high school. Allen also brings plenty of potential, but he lacks in confidence and speed right now. Merrick has a very impressive frame that reminds me of Kirkland right when he showed up with the Hogs. Those three are good additions to the Hog offensive line, but also show the lack of depth at the position right now.

Battles on the defensive interior

At the beginning of practice today, Jeremiah Ledbetter took a lot of snaps with the first team defense in their money package. As a guy who can play either inside or outside, he makes a strong 3-tech in that package. Ledbetter has a very strong bull rush that actually caught Tretola off guard during one-on-one pass drills later in the day. Hjalte Froholdt also got a lot of time today at nose. His speed isn’t to the level it needs to be, but that’s expected for an 18 year old four practices in. Bijhon Jackson looked solid today on the interior, and DeMarcus Hodge logged some positive reps, as well. The spot opposite Taiwan Jackson in the defense’s normal package should be Jackson’s for good, but the Hogs have added some depth on the interior.

Players made plays

All of the returning play-makers for the Hogs played the part today. Hunter Henry continues to be a huge passing game threat. Jeremy Sprinkle also had some nice touches at tight end. Alex Voelzke shouldn’t be bad, either. While I’m on the subject of tight ends, Will Gragg got a lot of reps today, and while he needs some work blocking-wise, he looked better than expected in the passing game.

At wide out, Keon Hatcher was very reliable in the short passing game and should be a staple for those situations. Other guys there who had good days were Jared Cornelius and Drew Morgan.

Of course, Jonathan Williams and Alex Collins both lived up to their expectations today.

On the defensive side, Brooks Ellis looked very good at WILL linebacker today. With the defensive backs, Josh Liddell continues to solidify himself as a strong option at free safety, while DJ Dean looked good at corner along with Henre’ Toliver and Santos Ramirez.