Lots and lots and lots of stuff to talk about after Tuesday’s practice. Offensive coordinator Paul Petrino and offensive players were available (well, most of them anyway — see below) and there was plenty to cover.

The biggest topic? WR Joe Adams return to practice.

Adams practiced on a limited basis for the first time since suffering the minor stroke the week of the Auburn game. He caught passes with other receivers off the machine at the start of the workout, then did some work with the trainers. Players also told us that Adams, apparently, caught some punts later in the workout when it was closed to the media.

Either way, the fact Adams was back in some capacity was good sign to the Razorbacks.

“It was kind of a start to his recovery I guess you could say,” receiver Jarius Wright said. “He has to start somewhere, so putting back on the pads coming out to practice with us today, it meant a real lot for the team.”

There’s still no timetable for Adams’ return to full speed at both practice and on gameday. Paul Petrino was asked about the potential for Adams’ return and said he’s not the guy to comment on that. However, Petrino said “I’m just happy to see him happy.”

“I hope every day that he’s going to be back,” Petrino said. “But more importantly, I just hope that he’s healthy and fine. So whenever they tell us he’s fine, I’ll be jumping up and down happy as can be. Until then, I just wish him the best and hope he keeps getting better.”

Let’s rundown a couple of other items of interest:

1. Alex Tejada spoke with the media for the first time since Saturday, when he missed two critical field goals in the 23-20 loss. I didn’t get a chance to talk to Tejada, but Alex Abrams did. Look for more from the kicker in tomorrow’s paper.

Tight end D.J. Williams did have a few things to say about Tejada, though. It includes a message to fans.

“That’s my boy,” Williams said. “I can’t understand how hard it could be for a kicker. Everybody says that’s what they do all day, but those are the people saying it. They’re in the stands watching it. They’re not out there doing it. He’s a great character kid. I know he’s going to bounce back. Hopefully we can get our fan support and not everybody bashing them because he is on our team and he’s a part of our family. Hopefully we can get our whole state to back him up and he’ll be just fine.”

2. RB Michael Smith was back on the practice field, but still limited to some extent. In fact, running backs coach Tim Horton said he doubted Smith would’ve been able to play if Tuesday had been Saturday. Smith wasn’t available for comment today to tell us how he’s feeling. But Arkansas will continue to monitor his progress on a day-to-day basis the rest of the week.

3. Paul Petrino said the Razorbacks continue to work hard on their third-down success. Arkansas was 2 of 13 at Florida. The Hogs are 20 of 76 (26.3 percent) this season, which ranks 116th in the nation.

“It’s something we always work hard on, we’ve always game planned,” Petrino said. “We’ve always taken great pride in being real good at it. It’s just something that right now we’re not as good as we need to be and hopefully it will be our coming out week and we light it up on third down.”

Make sure you check out RazorbackCentral.com for more in tomorrow’s paper.

Arkansas coach Bobby Petrino and several players finished answering questions from the media a few minutes ago. And while they all admitted how tough last week’s 23-20 loss to second-ranked Florida was to swallow, they’re anxious to move on and prepare for Saturday’s much anticipated game at Ole Miss.

Here’s what we learned from today’s news conferences:

-Petrino said he doesn’t have any other options at kicker other than Alex Tejada, who had two costly missed field-goal attempts in the second half of the Florida loss. Petrino said the former Springdale High star simply has to boot the football through the uprights. It’s as simple as that. It appears the Razorbacks are going to live or die by Tejada, who has been shaky during his time at Arkansas.

-Petrino said there’s really nothing Arkansas can do about some of questionable officiating in Florida. He said the team submits questionable calls to the SEC’s office on a seemingly weekly basis, but there’s no recourse that can come from that. Petrino seemed hesitant to talk about the officiating because, of course, it can never go well for a coach. But he said he was disappointed that an offensive pass interference penalty wasn’t called against Florida when wide receiver Riley Cooper appeared to take out cornerback Andru Stewart in the end zone.

-Petrino said running back Michael Smith is improving, but he won’t know more about the senior’s status until tonight. Smith missed the Florida game with a hamstring injury, allowing sophomore Dennis Johnson to get the bulk of the carries. Johnson wasn’t able to finish the game because he took a hit to the head, but he should be fine. Finally, Petrino said there’s hope that wide receiver Joe Adams could return this season, but he’s just not sure. The sophomore has been sidelined since suffering what was described as a minor stroke.

There’s the Cliff Note version of what was said. I’ll have more in Tuesday’s newspaper, as well as perhaps on the blog and/or Twitter (@NWAAlex).

It’s that time of week again — with a twist.

Instead of just giving you the five keys review, we’re also going to close out each game week with a new feature here on the blog. We’ll be awarded offensive, defensive and special teams players of the week awards. Why? Just because. So here we go.

1. Run the Football: The Razorbacks had trouble getting their run game going in the first half, but finished with a season-high 163 yards on the ground. More important, Arkansas averaged 5.3 yards a carry. Most of the rushing total came on Ronnie Wingo’s 62-yard touchdown run late in the game. Clearly, the run game needs more work. But for one night … KEY ACCOMPLISHED

2. Beware of Johnson: Jerrod Johnson’s ability to scramble and buy time was a big concern of Arkansas’ in practice last week. Johnson proved to be dangerous, too, throwing a 60-yard touchdown pass after scrambling around in the first quarter. But the Razorbacks did a good job keeping a close eye on the quarterback, chasing him from sideline to sideline. He finished with 21 rushing yards. … KEY ACCOMPLISHED

3. Make Early Statement: The goal was to get off to a great start, putting Texas A&M on its heels in its first big test. Well, it was the Aggies who came out firing. Texas A&M jumped out to a 10-o lead and could’ve done even more if not for an ill-timed drop ball. The good news for Arkansas is that it recovered from the shaky start. But the start was not pretty … KEY NOT ACCOMPLISHED

4. Win in the Trenches: Once again, this was a pretty one-sided key in the first quarter. But after struggling up front early on, Arkansas’ offensive and defensive lines took over the game. Especially the defensive front, which pressured Johnson off the edge nearly every snap. The offensive line did a good job, too, adjusting after Von Miller created havoc in the first quarter … KEY ACCOMPLISHED

5. Solid Special Teams: Give punter Dylan Breeding some credit. The true freshman had his best week as a Razorback, averaging 43.5 yards a punt Saturday. Alex Tejada made a couple of field goals, too, to improve to 6-for-6 this season. But Tejada missed an extra point and Jerell Norton fumbled a punt that could’ve been a killer if not for a defensive stand … KEY NOT ACCOMPLISHED

As for the Players of the Week:

Offensive Player of the Week: WR Joe Adams — The sophomore turned in one of the biggest plays of the game when he hauled in a pass from Ryan Mallett and beat Texas A&M for a 67-yard catch and run in the first quarter. The Razorbacks had been awful on offense until that point, but the catch led to a touchdown. Arkansas rolled after that. Adams finished with 3 catches for 110 yards.

Defensive Player of the Week: DE Tenarius Wright — Don’t get me wrong, DE Jake Bequette was impressive all night. But so was Wright. The redshirt freshman continues to improve and produced, arguably, the play of the game when he knocked the ball out of Jerrod Johnson’s hands. Jerry Franklin scooped it up and scored to give the Hogs a 21-10 lead. Wright finished with 1 sack and 2 forced fumbles.

Special Teams Player of the Week: P Dylan Breeding — You could count on one thing with Breeding in the first three games. Inconsistency. The freshman would boot a good punt, then shank one. But there weren’t any 9-yard punts Saturday. Breeding was consistent throughout, averaging 43.5 yards on his four attempts. His shortest was a 35-yarder. His best was a season-best, 54 yarder.

  OK, so now that Arkansas is about to kick off its season,  let’s try something that I attempted last year. I’m calling it Over-Under, though I’m not encouraging gambling in any way. (But if you’re betting, I like Charleston Southern to cover the 73-point spread against top-ranked Florida.)

  Anyway, here’s how Over-Under will go. I’ll throw out a statistic and then try to predict whether that number will fall short in Arkansas’ season opener against Missouri State. In case you’re not a gambler (which of course none of us are), it’s sounds more complicated than it actually is.

  So let’s begin…

  285 (Numbers of yards quarterback Ryan Mallett passes for in his Arkansas debut): I’m going to take the over. After all, Casey Dick threw for more than 300 yards in last year’s season opener against Western Illinois, which plays in the same conference as Missouri State. Now the only thing that could keep Mallett from passing for more than 285 yards is if he gets pulled early. After all, Arkansas coach Bobby Petrino said this week that backup quarterback Tyler Wilson will play. Still, I’m taking the over.

  98 (Number of yards running back Michael Smith rushes for in his first game back from a hamstring injury): Again, I’ll take the over. But this one could be a little tougher to predict because the Razorbacks now have a stable of tailbacks waiting behind Smith. The days of the shifty running back getting 35 carries a game are likely over, and guys like Broderick Green, Dennis Johnson and Ronnie Wingo Jr. will take some yards away from Smith. Still, the senior is good for at least 100 yards against Missouri State.

  1 (Number of field-goal or extra-point attempts kicker Alex Tejada misses on Saturday): I’m going to go out on a limb and take the under. Even though the former Springdale High star has been shaky during his career, I think he’ll get the job done against Missouri State. Tejada will make all of his field-goal and extra-point attempts, and one reason for that is because I don’t think he’ll have to attempt any long kicks. Arkansas’ offense should move the ball against the Bears, so even if Tejada is needed, it won’t be for a 40-yarder. So here’s to Tejada coming through.

  38.0 (Average yardage per punt by freshman Dylan Breeding in what will be his Arkansas debut and first start): This is a tough one. Here’s why: If Breeding struggles, Petrino will have  a quick hook and go with junior Briton Forester. That said, does Breeding show off his strong long and attempt enough punts to surpass 38.0 yards per punt? After all, how many times will the Razorbacks punt against Missouri State? I’m going to take the under, but I don’t think Breeding struggles enough for Petrino to pull him. Breeding will boot some nice punts and then maybe have one shank to end a relatively good debut.

  3 (Number of turnovers Arkansas’ defense forces against Missouri State): I say push, meaning that the Razorbacks will get exactly three turnovers. Of course, Arkansas’ defense had their share of problems against Western Illinois last year. A matter of fact, the defense struggled all of last season, which explains why it finished last in the SEC in most statistical categories. But defensive end Adrian Davis and defensive tackle Malcolm Sheppard will apply plenty of pressure upfront, leading to several interceptions and fumbles. And I think cornerback Ramon Broadway will get Arkansas’ first interception of the season.

  Well, there you go. Do you agree with my predictions? If not, where do we disagree? I’m going to make Over-Under a weekly Friday feature on the blog. (However, there won’t be one next week since Arkansas has a bye).

  And again, I’m not encouraging gambling on college football in anyway. So, who do you like: Miami or Florida State? Just kidding.

We got a lot of info from special teams coordinator John L. Smith last night. Some of it made it in the notebook in today’s paper, some of it did not. But it’s worthwhile to break down how things are shaping up a little more.

Smith said Arkansas is about “80 percent solid” in regard to personnel decisions on special teams. He said there still are some changes that will be made, however. So at this point, here’s a look at which direction Smith and the Razorbacks seem to be leaning at a few of the most-talked about spots.

Place Kicker: Alex Tejada — This is no surprise because Tejada is the most talented of Arkansas’ kickers. The question is whether or not Tejada will deliver. He had a better day last Saturday. One that Tejada said gave him some more confidence as the season gets closer. But he knows it’s just one day. So he’s not dwelling on it.

Punter: Briton Forester — John L. Smith has been up front from the start about his punters. Forester has some Division I experience and that means a lot to the Razorbacks right now. They don’t want to lean on true freshman Dylan Breeding if they don’t have to. But both punters have been inconsistent this preseason.

Punt Returner: Joe Adams — The receiver REALLY wants to return punts. He’s hoping his 85-yard TD on Saturday convinced Smith he should. Adams told Smith after the big return he was the man for the job. Smith’s response – “As quick as he looked, he kind of looked like the guy.” Don’t count out Michael Smith yet.

Kick Returner: Dennis Johnson — Johnson returned kicks last season and did it well. It didn’t look like he was going to be the man again early in camp because so many were trying out, but he may have gained the edge. Smith Smith indicated his resume makes him the leader. “He’s a nice looking body coming downhill at you,” Smith said. “That’s what you want, coming downhill and not wavering much. It’s not a dance deal, it’s a hit it deal.”

We got to talk to special teams coach John L. Smith after practice today and he covered a lot of ground.

Here’s a rundown:

• There’s a true freshman who is probably going to play this year not many would’ve guessed — linebacker Terrell Williams. Smith said the Tulsa native is a guy who has a chance to make an impact on special teams. He was working with the first-team kickoff coverage this morning and Smith said the Razorbacks are looking for youngsters that can excel in special teams this year.

When asked about Williams on special teams he said: “You said it.” When asked if Williams would redshirt he added: “I don’t think so. We’ll have to wait and see. Coach makes those decisions. But he could be on everything.”

Smith said the Razorbacks have a lot of starters on special teams right now and will leave it that way if they have to. But the goal is to find younger players who can excel on special teams.

“If we find a young guy we can use on three or four special teams, we want to do that,” Smith said. “Coach definitely wants to use those guys. Those are the kind of guys you need.”

• Place kicker Alex Tejada “didn’t have his best day,” missing field goals in both the morning and afternoon practices. Smith said he has been fairly pleased with Tejada throughout preseason camp, but wants to make sure Tejada keeps things simple in his approach to kicking.

“If he just concentrates on a couple of things: Plant and swing it and let it happen,” Smith said. “Don’t punch it. Don’t try to steer it. Just make sure you have a good plant and we finish the swing.

“I think that’s his biggest problem. He wants to hurry some things. He wants to get it to the green close, if you golfers know what I mean. Instead of swing it and let it happen.”

• The competition between punters Briton Forester and Dylan Breeding is still open. But Breeding has been getting more work with the first-team group lately. Smith said a little more about Breeding:

“We have both of those kids working and we’re just trying to figure out who’s going to be the guy,” Smith said. “He does have a strong leg. consistency, he’s just got to keep working on that. And it’s going to come.”

Smith was asked if that competition would go up to the opener. He said they prefer it didn’t. They don’t have to make a decision right away, but want to know which punter they’ll use as soon as possible.

• This always seems to be a popular question: Who are going to be Arkansas’ gunners on the punt coverage team. Well, Isaac Madison was one of those guys until he tore his ACL last Saturday.

So the competition is still undecided at this point. But he mentions that receivers could be in the mix. I did see Jarius Wright getting a look at one of those spots in the morning practice.

“Madison would’ve been the one guy you say, ‘OK, he’s probably the guy right now,’” Smith said. “But that’s a position that receivers can come over and play as well because they’re great with their hands. They’re used to getting off press and all of those things. You might even see some wideouts out there as well as DBs. We haven’t made a decison on those yet, either.”

An interesting twist at Arkansas football practice. After spending all morning talking to players and coaches at the team’s media day, no one was available for comment after the three-hour workout.

And I’m not complaining.

We won’t have any new quotes to share, but there were still several things worth noting from the practice field this afternoon. So let’s roll through them:

• The Razorbacks lost one player in practice and it is believed to be offensive lineman Kareem Crowell. I say that because I never saw Crowell go down, but did see a lineman carted off the field. Crowell was on the field at the beginning of practice, but not there at the end. No word on what happened because players and coaches weren’t available for comment. But we’ll find out more on that tomorrow morning.

• Running back Knile Davis was still not on the field after being away for the first three practices because of his father’s death. Arkansas coach Bobby Petrino told us at media day he was expected Davis to be back sometime late this afternoon. So, chances are, we’ll see Davis on the field tomorrow.

• Receiver Carlton Salters had some flair for the dramatic this afternoon. Salters pulled in a pair of impressive, diving catches during team drills. Both of the throws came from Tyler Wilson and were practically in an identical spot on the practice field. Both were easily the catches of the day.

• I saw new punter Briton Forester taking a few field goal attempts today. Alex Tejada continued to handle field goals with the first team, but Forester and Cameron Bryan got their chances too. It as the first time I noticed Forester kicking the ball. He was 21 of 22 on extra points at Palomar College last year.

• Cornerback Isaac Madison picked off two passes (one from Wilson, one from Ryan Mallett) in the span of roughly five plays. It was a nice sequence for the junior, who Petrino has spoken highly of this summer. Madison continues to work with the first team defense opposite Ramon Broadway.

• Damario Ambrose got some reps with the first-team defense during team drills today, while starter Jake Bequette was standing on the sideline. Bequette looked dinged up. It didn’t look like anything serious, but was enough to keep Bequette out for a little while. We’ll let you know how he looks tomorrow morning.

That’s about it for tonight. Arkansas will be back on the field tomorrow morning at 9 a.m.

I was busy at the ballpark Thursday night, so I didn’t have a chance to update the Hog Blog with something I thought was interesting.

It is a little extra info from a conversation I had with special teams coordinator John L. Smith on Tuesday night. I spoke to Smith as part of a story I wrote for Thursday’s paper on the added emphasis to Arkansas’ special teams this spring. You can find the story here.

Anyway, I asked Smith about his responsibilities since arriving and the first decision he made when he got on staff. It was a pretty big one. He told me it had to do with whether or not Arkansas would keep trusting in kicker Alex Tejada, who was coming off a disastrous 2008 season.

“Coach Petrino said what about our kicker? Do we need to go get a kicker?” Smith said. “After evaluating, I said, ‘No, we don’t need a kicker but we do need a punter. That’s what we better go find because I think our kicker is going to be fine.’”

Interesting, huh?

Smith’s decision still seems open for debate. Tejada hasn’t been particularly impressive kicking the ball this spring. He has shown plenty of leg, but his accuracy has been very, very inconsistent. To his credit, it’s something Tejada hasn’t hidden from.

“It’s inexcusable,” Tejada said. “I’m on my way to being a junior. Those mistakes and lack of concentration, whatever it is, is just inexcusable now. Inconsistency. I come out and miss one, two a day. We don’t need that. This team doesn’t need that.”

Stay tuned because we won’t know how to judge Tejada until next fall, when he steps out on the field to attempt a field goal.

Arkansas picked up a big win against Tulsa on Saturday night. Surprisingly, it was the defense and special teams that led the way in the second half. Arkansas didn’t allow a touchdown in the second half and scored the game-winning touchdown on Dennis Johnson’s 96-yard kickoff return.

But I’m getting ahead of myself. Here’s how the five keys went:

1. Pick Up the Blitz: Arkansas quarterback Casey Dick nearly set the school record for passing yards. A good chunk of that has to be given to the offensive line, which did give him some time. However, Dick was sacked three times to add to Arkansas’ growing total. But I’ll say MISSION ACCOMPLISHED

2. Take Away the Run: Tulsa rushed for 184 yards against the Razorbacks, leaning on their misdirection to slip through holes. At one point, the Golden Hurricane ran the ball play after play and seemed to be wearing down the Hogs. But Tulsa couldn’t run the ball when it mattered most at the end of the game. Arkansas stuffed the Golden Hurricane inside their 10 to win the game so MISSION ACCOMPLISHED

3. Get Long, Successful Drives: The Razorbacks opened the game with an 80-yard drive. They added a 65-yarder a little later and were dominating time of possession in the first half. The offense had a 13-play drive in the third quarter, too, which led to a field goal. But there is a problem. Arkansas got into Tulsa’s red zone seven times. It scored five times. Only two were field goals. So MISSION SOMEWHAT ACCOMPLISHED

4. Put Pressure on Johnson: Arkansas attacked right out of the gates to set the tone. Tulsa’s quarterback was sacked on the first two plays from scrimmage. The Razorbacks didn’t get to him much after the first series and finished with three sacks, but it was an important start. So MISSION ACCOMPLISHED

5. Make Plays on Special Team: Finally, Arkansas had something positive happen on special teams. Dennis Johnson’s 96-yard kick return was the play of the game. Alex Tejada took advantage of his second chance, hitting three field goals and three extra points. The only blemish was Tulsa’s 81-yard kickoff return in the second quarter. But it’s not enough to ruin their score. So MISSION ACCOMPLISHED

Arkansas coach Bobby Petrino has pulled the plug on place kicker Alex Tejada.

The Razorbacks just had a drive stall inside the Texas 20 and Petrino put his kicking team on the field. Instead of Tejada, backup Shay Haddock got a chance to knock one through the uprights. Haddock made the 30-yarder to give the Razorbacks their first points of the game.

Texas leads Arkansas 17-3 midway through the second quarter.