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Red and White Spring Game: April 23, noon
Bret Bielema’s fourth spring in Arkansas comes with as much excitement as it does questions. But thanks to the coach’s early success with the program, the Razorbacks promise to be, once again, one of the more intriguing squads to watch in 2016.
But first the Hogs must address several key issues this spring.
Here’s a look at Arkansas as they make their initial preparations in their 2016 quest to win the program’s fourth SEC West title.
THREE BIG QUESTIONS
1. Can Arkansas return to its ground game?
The Razorbacks’ modus operandi in Bielema’s first three seasons has been his running game. With a solid ground game and outstanding play-action, quarterback Brandon Allen was able to flourish, and the Razorbacks developed into one of the more dynamic offenses in 2015.
But with Allen, along with the running backs Alex Collins and Jonathan Williams, all preparing for the NFL Draft, Bielema is looking at an overhaul of his offense — except at wide receiver where the top four pass-catchers return.
Arkansas loses more than 6,000 career yards rushing. But capable backs remain in Fayetteville. Kody Walker finished second on the team with 394 yards and 6 touchdowns. The rising senior is accompanied by Rawleigh Williams III — who is making tremendous strides in his recovery from neck surgery — and impressed during his freshman campaign with 254 yards and a touchdown as a third option before suffering the brutal neck injury against Auburn.
New to the running backs corps isn’t just new coach Reggie Mitchell, who coached with Dan Enos at Central Michigan, but Devwah Whaley, as well. The four-star recruit should compete with Walker and Williams III for carries.
Damon Mitchell, a junior, and sophomore Juan Day will enter this spring also looking to earn their share of carries.
2. Is this the year Bielema puts it all together?
Bielema’s win total has increased each year. If history repeats, 2016 could be a big year.
Bielema’s fourth season in Wisconsin was also when his fortunes turned. Bielema’s Badgers went 10-3 his fourth season, beginning a 32-8 stretch over three years, including a pair of trips to the Rose Bowl.
It won’t be easy, as he prepares for a tough 2016 slate with new personnel. Along with the usual SEC West fare, the Razorbacks also must begin prep for SEC East champs Florida and an out-of-conference road trip to face Texas Christian.
One of the biggest challenges this spring for Bielema is integrating several new faces on his coaching staff. Among the new staff are coordinators for the offensive line (Kurt Anderson), defensive backs (Paul Rhoads) and at running back (Mitchell).
Anderson, who is cut from the same brash cloth at Bielema, arrives via the Buffalo Bills, and should maintain the unit that Sam Pittman, now of Georgia, developed into beastly proportions. Rhoads brings more than two decades of experience to the Hogs’ defensive backs corps, most recently as head coach of Iowa State.
Mitchell landed his job after he contacted Enos to recommend another coach to fill the Hogs’ vacancy. To Mitchell’s surprise, Enos informed his former coach at Central Michigan that he (Mitchell) was atop his list for the role.
Now comes the task of molding the coaching staff into a unit that’s worth its nearly $8 million in combined salary.
3. Can Rhoads help solidify the secondary?
Getting the defense back to its 2014 levels is a must if the Razorbacks want to exceed their eight wins from 2015. The offense isn’t expected to carry Arkansas this season, but the good news is that the defense returns largely intact.
The biggest need starting this spring is strengthening the secondary, which allowed the most passing yards in the SEC last year (275 yards per game). Arkansas only picked off 11 passes, with only Josh Liddell and D.J. Dean nabbing more than one. Dean will compete in non-contact drills this spring after offseason foot surgery.
Rhoads has the acumen to turn around the unit. He’s coached six defensive backs who have been drafted into the NFL, the most-notable being Darrelle Revis during his time as defensive coordinator at Pittsburgh.
Having a bolstered defensive line, should also help Rhoads and the secondary improve.
NEWCOMERS TO WATCH
- DE McTelvin “Sosa” Agim: Agim is a five-star force who has been practicing with the team since its pre-bowl practices and is expected to challenge for playing time immediately. Keeping the state’s No. 1 recruit in Arkansas is a major coup for Bielema and the Razorbacks, who have lost several of the Natural State’s No. 1 talents to the likes of Auburn (three times) during the past decade.
- *RB Devwah Whaley: The Texas native spurned Georgia and Texas, which was favored to land the Beaumont Central running back, to suit up for Arkansas. Whaley provides nice depth and should emerge in a Hogs’ backfield seeking a new leader.
OFFENSIVE STARTERS TO REPLACE
- QB Brandon Allen
- RB Alex Collins
- RB Jonathan Williams*
- TE Hunter Henry
- LT Denver Kirkland
- LG Sebastian Tretola
- C Mitch Smothers
* 2014 starter, injured last season
Arkansas offensive coordinator Dan Enos is tasked with replacing seven starters, including three linemen.
The biggest line in all of football last year is looking a bit lighter without its left side.
But the sky is not falling, despite the fact that just two of the roster’s offensive linemen are upperclassmen. New line coach Kurt Anderson will begin crafting the new unit around those upperclassmen in returning starters Dan Skipper — who returns for his senior season at right tackle — and Frank Ragnow. Depending on how the spring plays out, Ragnow could stay at right guard or slide over and replace Smothers at center, a position he backed-up as a freshman.
Sophomores Brian Wallace (redshirt) and Colton Jackson expect to push one another to replace Kirkland at left tackle. The unit will also add to the mix offensive guard Terrance Malone, via Northwest Mississippi Community College.
Reestablishing the line is paramount considering all of the changes in the backfield.
DEFENSIVE STARTERS TO REPLACE
- DT DeMarcus Hodge
- SS Rohan Gaines
Unlike the offense, Arkansas’ defense is flush with returning starters. Of those nine players — who each played in all 13 games last season and combined for 444 tackles — five are seniors and only one will be an underclassman.
That rising sophomore is Dre Greenlaw, the team’s second-leading tackler (95). But the weakside linebacker and budding star needs to spend the spring working on his academics, having been temporarily booted due to his performance in the classroom not quite aligning with his intensity on the field.
Rising senior Deatrich Wise Jr. led the team in tackles-for-loss (10.5) and will anchor the line.
That makes the spring all about adding depth, particularly at linebacker where the production falls off after Greenlaw and fellow Fayetteville High School alum, and team-leader in tackles (102), Brooks Ellis.
TOP RETURNERS BY CATEGORY
Top returning passer: Austin Allen (35 yards in 2015)
Top returning rusher: Kody Walker (394 yards)
Top returning receiver: Drew Morgan (63 catches, 843 yards)
Top returning tackler: Brooks Ellis (102)
Top returning pass rusher: Deatrich Wise Jr. (8.0 sacks)
Top returning pass defender: Jared Collins (10 passed defended)
POSITION OF CONCERN: QUARTERBACK
Bielema refers to the language of his program as “Hoganese,” and if you don’t know how to speak it, you might not last long in his good graces.
Just ask Ricky Town. The quarterback got a chance to see some time under center in the pre-bowl practices, but allegedly couldn’t speak a lick of “Hoganese,” according to Arkansas News. Now the touted-transfer sits at No. 4 on the Razorbacks’ depth chart.
“He never really got a grasp of the offense,” Bielema told Arkansas News. “We put him in there during bowl prep and he literally did not know any Hoganese. He was deficient in Hoganese, so he couldn’t really call plays. (Enos) is getting on him and he’s like ‘uhhhh,’ like we’re speaking French to him. That’s going to be a really big part of what we do this spring is bring along Ricky.”
The good news is the Razorbacks have other talented options — albeit untested talent. Allen’s younger brother Austin sits atop the depth chart, if only because he’s the only player among six candidates who has thrown a pass (9 of 19, 188 yards, TD, INT) in a college game.
Four-star talents Rafe Peavey and Ty Storey will also get a look. The rising sophomore Peavey, the program’s only dual-threat quarterback, appears to have the edge heading into the spring as Allen’s back-up.
That’s not to say Town is out of the running. The four-star recruit has the talent and has already begun working his way back into the coach’s favor.
The signal-caller who orates the best Hoganese will likely start the opener against Louisiana Tech. Bielema isn’t done adding quarterbacks, either. The Razorbacks recently signed preferred walk-on Carson Proctor to its 2016 recruiting haul.
He’d better start learning his Hoganese.
Pig Sooie!! pic.twitter.com/zSvi1jhep5
— Carson Proctor (@Carson14proc) March 17, 2016
Chris Wuensch is a contributing writer for Saturday Down South. He covers South Carolina and Tennessee.
