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Six Razorbacks Honored By Phil Steele

FAYETTEVILLE –Six Arkansas football players were named to the three Phil Steele’s 2008 All-Southeastern Conference Teams it was announced on Thursday. Senior center Jonathan Luigs and sophomore tight end D.J. Williams highlight the six Razorbacks with first-team offensive nods by the college football publication.

Along with Luigs and Williams, junior Michael Smith was named to the second-team offense at running back; senior punter Jeremy Davis was placed on the second team defense and the tandem of junior defensive tackle Malcolm Sheppard and redshirt freshman linebacker Jerry Franklin earned spots on the third-team defense.

Luigs was touted by Phil Steele’s preseason magazine as a first-team all-SEC and All-America team member and the nation’s no.1 center. His first-team all-SEC award is his second in as many years having taken the honor in 2007 prior to earning unanimous All-America honors and the Rimington Trophy as the nation’s top center.

Williams award comes as no shock following the sophomore’s breakout season in 2008. Entering the year with just five catches as a freshman, Williams was a John Mackey Award semifinalist which goes to the nation’s best tight end. He hauled in a near school record 61 receptions for 723 yards to lead the Razorbacks and was consistently among the nation’s top receivers in both receptions and yards per game.

Rounding out the offense, Michael Smith picks up his first Phil Steele honor. The Tallahassee, Fla., native became the ninth Razorback to rush for 1,000 yards in a season and led the SEC in rushing most of the year. He would eventually finish second to Georgia’s Knowshon Moreno for tops in the league.

On special teams, Davis capped his career with a tremendous season for the Hogs. He finished 17^th in the nation in punting and was a Draddy Award semifinalist. Davis kicked 13 punts over 50 yards during the season and averaged more than 42 yards per punt for the first time in his career.

The rock of the defensive line, Sheppard led the Arkansas defense in four statistical categories this fall including sacks (6.5), tackles for a loss (14.5), quarterback hurries (12) and forced fumbles (2). He finished the 2008 season with a career high 68 tackles, second on the Arkansas roster.

Franklin led Arkansas in tackles this season with 87 over the Razorbacks’ 12-game schedule as well as solo tackles (54), assisted tackles (33), interceptions (2) and fumble recoveries (2). Midway through the season Franklin’s interception of Florida’s Tim Tebow ended the third longest streak in SEC history of consecutive passes without an interception.

Phil Steele’s All-America team along with other post-season football awards are scheduled to be released next week

Bobby Petrino's Year End Press Conference

Head Coach Bobby Petrino

“I’m happy with the last game. Our guys played hard, and played with good effort. Our coaches had a good plan, particularly early in the game on offense, and late in the game on defense. It was a good game for us, certainly a great way for us to end the season and head into recruiting.”

Defensive strategy

“We knew that they were about 70% run, so we put in a different personnel group. I thought we had to get as much strength and size into the game as possible. When they went to [a certain] personnel, we went to a bigger defense. We inserted Cord Gray with a three technique, moved Malcolm [Sheppard] out to an end, brought in Lavunce Askew at the other end, and brought Walner Leandre down from the safety spot. We put every big guy we had in the box, and left the corners out there completely by themselves. That’s why when you give up the one big touchdown, you really can’t worry about it. You’ve just got to keep playing, because they were out there the whole time by themselves. It really helped us stop the run, helped us on first down, and got us ahead in the sticks and put pressure on the freshman quarterback.”

The possibility of Malcolm Sheppard at Defensive end next year

“I don’t know about that yet. It depends on his ability to get bigger, he has aspirations to play at the next level and the idea is if he can get to 290, or 295, he could be a very active pass rusher inside, and if he can’t carry that weight then defensive end is a great possibility.”

Regarding the coaching staff

“I anticipate no movement in our staff, sometimes a coach walks in and has an opportunity somewhere else, but I certainly feel that our staff worked extremely hard, did a good job in the transition. They’re very good teachers, they’re very detailed oriented, we got better as the year went on and played a lot of young guys. I think the carryover of not only what we do scheme wise, but what we do as far as our technique and the details to our position will really help our young guys.”

How much better are you at the end of the season compared to the start?

“I think we were a lot better. As I was watching cut ups today you see the Western Illinois game and the Louisiana-Monroe game and having to come behind in those games. I think we improved a lot. We’re certainly not where we want to be, and we’re working toward that. I’m looking forward to the off season, because we have a lot to work on. First and foremost with out physical status. We have to get stronger, bigger and work extremely hard on our speed. I think it’s going to be great for these young guys, true freshman, redshirt freshman to understand now what they are facing each week. The size and the speed of the competition, and I think our motivation will be very high.”

In the injuries to Lucas Miller and Michael Smith

“Lucas [Miller] is scheduled to have surgery sometime here shortly. Michael [Smith] had surgery. He ended up having a torn hamstring. He went and had a second opinion and they wanted to have surgery on it. He’s back and doing well. Certainly he won’t get a lot of action in the spring but we expect him to be 100% by the fall.”

Who is the quarterback for next year?

“It’s pretty wide open. Certainly what Nathan did in the last two games carries over and we have a lot of work to do in the offseason and before spring ball. It will be interesting to see how they all handle that. I know they’re all looking forward for the competitiveness of it and it should be a good competition. I know I’m looking forward to it. I think they’ll all benefit from the competition. “

Ryan Mallett

“Ryan has a tremendous amount of natural leadership. When he steps into the huddle it demands a lot of respect from his teammates. A lot of that comes natural to him. It’s not an area we need to work on, which is a good thing for a quarterback. He did a tremendous job in his redshirt fall working extra on his foot quickness. He dropped 20 pounds, which is very encouraging. I thought he did a great job handling it. It’s hard when you’re that competitive and you have always played your entire life in every sport and been the starter and probably the star of the team to sit back and have to watch. I think he had a good redshirt year. He was in all the meetings, took all the tests and went through everything for the game plan. I think he has a chance. He can really throw the ball and has a good, quick, natural upper body release. All of his work needs to be on his foot quickness and his ability to move in the pocket and avoid the rush. “

Red Shirt Players

“There were a number of guys that stood out in redshirt practices. Alfred Davis came into camp about 20 pounds overweight and certainly wasn’t in condition to play early in the season and dropped the weight as he got working out and got stronger and did an excellent job in the weight room. He was a load to block on the scout team and in those workouts. He is a big guy that can play inside and uses his hands well. He really seems like he understands the game so I think he really has a chance to make an impact early for us. Tenarius Wright is a guy that we were planning on playing as a true freshman and he came to camp with a great mindset then had that high ankle sprain. He will be a really good football player whether it is at inside linebacker or outside linebacker or a cross between an outside linebacker and a defensive end.”

Hogs Thump Texas Southern 80-61

FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. – Arkansas Razorback men’s basketball picked up its 37th-consecutive non-conference home win with its 80-61 victory over the Texas Southern Tigers on Wednesday at Bud Walton Arena.
The Razorbacks, who are now 5-1, had three players (Rotnei Clarke, Jason Henry and Michael Sanchez) score in double digits and recorded 20 assists against just 10 turnovers. Michael Washington led the team on the glass, grabbing seven defensive boards and two offensive rebounds for nine total.
Henry, with career highs in total points and rebounds, led the Hogs in scoring with 19 points. His line also included seven rebounds, one block and one assist.
DeAndre Hall led the Texas Southern scorers with 19 points, three assists and five rebounds. With the loss, the Tigers fall to 0-7.
Clarke pitched in with 16 points and Sanchez scored 10. Courtney Fortson had a solid outing as he dished out 11 assists with just one turnover, scored six points and recorded five rebounds, one block and one steal.
Texas Southern took a one-point lead with 14:55 to play in the first half. After Clarke hit a three pointer at the 14:13 mark, Arkansas never relinquished its lead.
At the end of the first half, the Cardinal and White held a 43-25 advantage over the Tigers. Henry led the Hogs with 10 points in the first 20 minutes.
The Razorbacks will play next Wednesday, Dec. 10, when they take on the North Carolina Central Eagles at 7:05 p.m. at Bud Walton Arena. Tickets are available by calling the Razorback Ticket Office at 1-800-982-4647.

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