Tyler Wilson wasn’t afraid of grabbing control of Arkansas’ football team when Ryan Mallett went down with a broken left toe in February. This was his team now, the backup quarterback said, and he was going to step up and be the leader these Razorbacks needed without the record-setting Mallett.
Arkansas quarterback Tyler Wilson throws a pass during practice Wednesday at Razorback Stadium. (Arkansas Democrat-Gazette/MICHAEL WOODS)
But Wilson has struggled after three days as Arkansas’ go-to quarterback in the spring. He’s overthrown passes, made some mistakes near the sidelines on throws and has looked off at times with his decisions.
“There’s something about Ryan being out and Tyler being the starting quarterback right now, that it adds a little bit of pressure to Tyler’s plate,” offensive coordinator Garrick McGee said. “I think he’s been struggling with that the last couple of days, just wanting to do everything perfect. Because, as you guys know, Tyler can really throw the football. He can make some throws that Ryan can’t make, and I think now he’s kind of stressed out about being The Guy and being the quarterback.”
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McGee believes Wilson will settle down and get back to being a consistent player once the Razorbacks cease installing new plays to their offense. After all, Wilson isn’t the only player struggling as Arkansas mixes in new plays early on this spring. Arkansas’ receivers struggled at times Friday, the Hogs’ first day in full pads.
And don’t forget about Arkansas’ two new assistant coaches on offense. Receivers coach Kris Cinkovich and offensive line coach Chris Klenakis are still getting adjusted as well.
“The first three days, we throw it at them,” McGee said of offensive installation. “And I bet we probably threw it at our coaches also.”
Receivers struggle in full pads
Arkansas may have looked as fast as ever at times on offense and defense Friday, but receivers struggled to hold onto balls near the end of 11-on-11 drills.
Greg Childs‘ two dropped passes were the most noticeable. His second missed catch hit him in the helmet, making for an ugly looking play. Three different defensive backs had interceptions late in the drills as well.
“Not good at all. This is not where I need to be at right now,” Childs said.
Not all was bad. Several receivers made good catches and an unknown, sophomore Price Holmes of Batesville, Ark., had a nice catch over his shoulder and down the sideline in coverage late in practice.
And here’s the thing: It wouldn’t be surprising to see several receivers and relative unknowns have some eye-catching grabs this spring. By my count, Arkansas dressed 16 receivers today at practice. Sixteen. Backup Lance Ray was slightly injured and was working in a corner of the Walker Pavilion this afternoon after working at kick return, diminishing the number to 15.
The added numbers give the veteran Razorbacks some time to relax. This pass-heavy offense can really take a toll on first- and second-team receivers, especially with Coach Bobby Petrino being notorious for running 120-plus play scrimmages.
“There are a lot of new faces, but I knew a couple of the kids from high school and they were great high school players, so I figure if they come up here and work like when we (Jarius Wright, Childs and Joe Adams) first came up here, they’ve got the same opportunity we have now,” Wright said. ” It’s all about what they do with the opportunity they have.”
The receivers will get a chance to bounce back in a scrimmage Saturday.
“There were a couple of dropped balls, but some times you can live with dropped balls when your receivers are out there playing as hard as we were today,” Wright said. “It’s the first day in pads. I’m not going to make any excuses for my receivers or myself, but we’re going to get better at catching the ball as we move on and progress.”
A battle? What battle?
Arkansas’ stable of running backs is deep, and while we’ve talked about how sophomore speedster Ronnie Wingo has an opportunity here to take over and be the top guy, that doesn’t necessarily seem to be the case.
Offensive coordinator Garrick McGee was asked to talk about the running back rotation and the battle being had by Wingo, Broderick Green, Knile Davis and Dennis Johnson.
“I don’t know the running back battle you’re talking about,” McGee said. “We have a way to play them all, and we’re going to play them all. Now, somebody has got to run out there first — unless we start the game with two running backs. So, it’s not a battle. We’re going to need them all. It’s a long, tough season. In this conference, you’re going to need them all. They’re going to get banged up.”
It’s obvious these running backs will be used according to their strengths. Wingo is a great pass-catcher out of the backfield, Green is a bruiser and Davis is a speedster off the corner.
It’ll be interesting to see how Arkansas uses the ‘backs this spring in scrimmages.
What to watch
Arkansas is scheduled to practice and scrimmage Saturday at 10 a.m. It won’t be a full scrimmage, so don’t expect a nearly 200-play day at Razorback Stadium. The Hogs will practice, then break into their first live scrimmage of the spring.
We’re sure to see the ‘Shot’ formation, better known as the ‘Pistol,’ and what the Razorbacks hope to do with the offense surrounding the backup quarterbacks. More than that, the coaches are looking for a continuation of the change in attitude with the team. The “attitude is right,” McGee said.
“What I’m looking for is toughness — mental and physical toughness,” McGee explained. “Meaning, when they get tired, they still can execute our offense and execute their fundamentals. When I evaluated our season last year, that’s where we’re lacking. When things go wrong, having the ability to snap right back and move on to the next play. That’s going to be important for us. That’s what I’m looking for.
Another thing I’m looking for is guys running with the ball after the catch — or after contact. … We have to be better runners after the catch, because we’ve got big, strong athletes that are fast and we’ve got to push them to be more violent as they’re running the football.
“I expect our quarterbacks to execute our offense tomorrow. Tyler has been around here for a while. He should understand what we’re doing. He’s just got to get himself comfortable and settle down. I expect him to execute our offense tomorrow.”
VIDEO
McGee talks offense
April 2, 2010 — Arkansas offensive coordinator Garrick McGee discusses his offense, his quarterbacks’ struggles and the running game. This is the entire press conference.
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I’ll be at the practice/scrimmage tomorrow providing updates, so make sure to check back here on the blog and on Twitter (@bmarcello). I’ll even have some statistics for you to munch on from the scrimmage, so stay tuned.
Make sure to check out WholeHogSports.com and the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette for more coverage. You can also follow us on Twitter for breaking news updates with @bmarcello and @wholehogsports.
Brandon, these are excellent reports. As someone who lives to far away to attend practices, these are very descriptive reports of what is happening. Great reporting or blogging or whatever it’s called these days.
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