Just polished off a feature that will appear in tomorrow’s paper and wanted to get out some news and notes from Thursday’s practice. It was the last chance we’ll have to speak to the Razorbacks until Monday morning, which means we spent plenty of time trying to collect every bit of information for the weekend.

Bobby Petrino spoke to the media this afternoon and had plenty to say. So let’s run through the highlights:

• Ryan Mallett is officially Arkansas’ starter. I know. Surprise, surprise. Petrino said the sophomore will start and added that he would like to play Tyler Wilson in the opener. But there’s no guarantees. It’s a bit of a change from the spring, when Petrino said Mallett would start and Wilson would play the second quarter.

“Tyler is a good quarterback and I certainly want to get him into the game,” Petrino said today. “I haven’t made the decision yet whether that will be the second series of the second quarter or not. It’s something we’ve spent a lot of time talking about. We’ve got all the confidence in the world in Tyler.”

• Joe Adams missed his second straight practice Thursday and now we know why. Petrino said he has tweaked his hamstring and has been doing some rehab this week. But Petrino said Adams’ injury isn’t serious and added that he’ll be back at practice next week. For now, he simply said Adams is “on a little vacation.” Nice.

• The Razorbacks will hold a mock game tomorrow and Petrino said it will be “big for depth.” It’s the last chance for younger players to prove they deserve to be in the rotation or save themselves from a redshirt. Petrino said it also will serve as an opportunity for players to move up the depth chart.

What does that mean? Well, I think it’s probably a big day for running backs like De’Anthony Curtis and Knile Davis as they try to earn some carries. It’s got to be big for freshmen cornerbacks like David Gordon and Darius Winston. And it will be interesting to see how the demoted defensive players respond in the scrimmage opportunity.

• Wide receiver London Crawford is back at practice this week after missing most of last week with a leg injury. And Crawford had plenty to say about his time on the sideline.

“It’s not fun. I’d rather be in the battle with those guys any day. Those guys, they kept me focused. Kept pushing me. Telling me it’s going to be all right. Just sit aside, get healed and come back strong. That’s what I’ve been doing.”

• Petrino said the Razorbacks have split their time on the practice field this week. Half of the practices have been used to challenge each other and compete for starting spots. Half of it has been spent on preparing for Missouri State.

• Lastly, as if you didn’t know it, the Razorbacks are ready for an opponent. At least, that’s what Mallett said when asked about it tonight: “Any day you can come out and play, it’s a lot of fun. But we’re ready to see a different color jerseys out there. There’s no doubt about it. We’re ready to get after some people.”