Why is the blog practice report so late? It’s Auburn offensive lineman and former Rogers High star Lee Ziemba’s fault!

Let me explain: I spent about 15 minutes talking to Ziemba on the phone after practice tonight, gathering several items for stories/notes/blogs that I’ll use later in the week. So I couldn’t get to the blog until a few minutes ago. (By the way, I’m not really blaming Ziemba. That would be dumb since he’s much, much bigger than me. I appreciate the phone call Lee!)

Anyway, on to the practice notes:

• Arkansas receiver London Crawford is tired of watching games from the sideline. But if things go well the rest of the week, Crawford might be back on the field against Auburn on Saturday. Crawford said he went through contact work during Tuesday’s practice for the first time since breaking his collarbone during the season opener against Missouri State.

“It felt pretty good to be out there with my teammates, being able to run around,” Crawford said. “The past few weeks I had to be kind of a cheerleader, which I didn’t really have a problem with. But seeing those guys out there running around made me want to be out there making plays with them. For me to be out there running around (Tuesday), making plays with them, it felt great.”

Arkansas offensive coordinator Paul Petrino said the Razorbacks will continue to be cautious with Crawford, though. He said the receiver did shed his yellow, non-contact jersey during practice. But they want to see what he does the rest of the week before playing him Saturday.

“It means we keep an eye on him all week and see how he’s going,” Petrino said. “He was able to practice today and not in yellow. That was good to see. We’ll judge him each day, see how he comes along and make our decision at the end of the week.”

• Big news: Paul Petrino said the running backs topped the receivers in Arkansas’ bull yards competition. If you don’t know what I’m talking about, Arkansas calculates yards after catch for receivers and yards after contact for running backs. The receivers had dominated the competition the first three games, but RB Ronnie Wingo helped the backs Saturday thanks in part to his 62-yard touchdown run.

I was surprised to hear that, especially since WR Joe Adams had such a big day running in the open field after catches. Petrino said Adams did account for plenty of bull yards, but didn’t have much help. (Program note: Check for more on bull yards in The Morning News later this week)

• Arkansas’ offensive line turned in its best performances against Texas A&M. In particular, Petrino said center Seth Oxner played his best since getting the starting job. He added that DeMarcus Love and Mitch Petrus played well, while Ray Dominguez performed better.

“They all probably had their best games run-blocking wise,” Petrino said.

Petrus was tougher when he spoke to the media. He said Arkansas’ line made mistakes that could prove costly against a team like Auburn. “We did all right,” Petrus said. “Better than we did at Alabama. We strive for perfection, but it’s unrealistic a lot of times.”

• Finally, Petrino was asked about QB Ryan Mallett’s development in his ability to make checks and changes at the line of scrimmage.

“He’s done a nice job,” Petrino said. “It’s a process. As the year goes on he’ll get better and better. He’s a smart football player. I think that’s one of his strengths. He does a good job of understanding football and does a good job of checking for us.”

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.

We just got through talking to Arkansas coach Bobby Petrino for the last time before Saturday’s game at No. 3 Alabama.

The question on everyone’s mind: Will the Razorbacks really be playing Anthony Oden on the offensive line?

Yes.

Petrino did not name a starter, but said both Oden and Ray Dominguez split reps at tackle in practice this week and will play against the Crimson Tide. Dominguez lost his grip on the starting job because of penalty problems against Georgia. Petrino said Oden continued to improve in practice this week and believes he’s ready for playing time.

“He’s had a good week of practice,” Petrino said. “He’s a guy who has all kinds of talent. Did a nice job in that first game, has been taking reps all the time. But he’s going to be a great football player before its over with. We’ve just got to make sure he’s ready now.”

There’s a couple other things worth mentioning, too:

• Petrino said RB Ronnie Wingo had a good week of practice, too. He’s expecting both Wingo and freshman Knile Davis to play a bigger role against the Crimson Tide. Once again, Petrino emphasized the Razorbacks need to get their running game going Saturday.

• Petrino spoke more about his defense tonight, saying the group’s “stinger was hurt a little bit” against Georgia. He said the defense has responded well in practice this week, but Arkansas needs to “go and have success” down at Alabama to gain confidence.

• There’s a decent chance for rain Saturday, but Petrino said there wasn’t any wet ball work in practice this week. Why? He said the Razorbacks have gotten “five or six days” of wet ball work this fall. Two of those days came last week, when rain chances were good for Arkansas-Georgia.

• Petrino was also asked about Alabama and how it uses nose guard Terrence Cody as a blocking fullback near the goal line. Petrino said Arkansas must keep Alabama off the goal line because its power running game is strong.

That’s all for now, but check out RazorbackCentral.com for more about the game tomorrow and Saturday.

And don’t forget to check the blog tomorrow because I’ll clean out my notebook with all kinds of leftover news, notes and quotes.

Just walked back in the door from Arkansas’ press conference. Bobby Petrino, QB Ryan Mallett, WR Greg Childs and DE Jake Bequette were selected to participate today. Here are the biggest things we learned:

1. LB Jerry Franklin, indeed, will be back on the field Saturday. Petrino confirmed what the SEC office told us earlier today, saying Franklin won’t be suspended for his ejection. However, Petrino said reviewing the film showed that Franklin did bump an official and deserved to be ejected. He said it will serve as a lesson to Franklin and anybody else who was watching. Franklin will be disciplined in house according to Petrino, but will be back in his starting spot Saturday.

2. Arkansas’ WRs will get some help Saturday from senior Lucas Miller. The senior will be back on the field after missing the first two games with a broken collarbone. It should help, considering Petrino believed his sophomore trio of Greg Childs, Joe Adams and Jarius Wright were worn down in the second half. The Razorbacks plan to get Miller and freshman Cobi Hamilton more work, giving them at least five receivers they can count on against the Crimson Tide.

3. Petrino said there are a handful of players that need more playing time. The three he mentioned — freshman running back Ronnie Wingo, freshman offensive tackle Greg Oden, and junior safety Anthony Leon. Not sure if it means those three will find their way into starting roles (OK, not Wingo). But we’ll know more when we take a look at the first 20 minutes of practice. Petrino did say that Wingo’s lack of playing time is on him. He just didn’t want to put a freshman in a game like that and in a situation like that. Instantly, I thought of Houston Nutt’s decision not to play Darren McFadden and Felix Jones vs. Vanderbilt in 2005.

4. Speaking of running backs, Petrino was asked about Broderick Green and the goal line. He put the blame on the offensive line for not opening any sort of path for Green to run. Remember, the big back was stuffed a couple of times in the second half. Arkansas eventually scored on the drive, but the inability to run the ball into the end zone remains obvious.

We know that Arkansas running back Michael Smith is going to be a very important piece in Arkansas’ offense.

But we also know that Smith won’t be the Razorbacks’ only weapon, which is what it looked like last season when he carried the offense and, in the process, ran his 5-foot-9, 165-pound body into the ground.

Arkansas is planning to take some of the load off Smith this season and we should get our first look at how much beginning with Saturday’s opener against Missouri State. It’s something I explored in the story I wrote for this morning’s paper. You can find it by clicking this link. We don’t know how many carries Smith will get, but it’s clear he will have more help with Dennis Johnson, Broderick Green, Ronnie Wingo, Knile Davis and De’Anthony Curtis all looking for opportunities this season.

I didn’t have space for everything in the story, but wanted to explore how the other backs could be used.

It’s actually something Smith described during Monday’s press conference.

“Our coach, he’s a situational-type coach,” Smith said. “Whatever situation we’re in may call for a different type of back. If I’m tired, we need a long one or a draw or something like that, Dennis would be in. If we need two or three yards, Broderick would be in. If we need somebody to hit the corner fast, Ronnie would be in.

“So there’s a lot of room for everybody to play in different situations. He’s just going to put the backs in whatever situation that they could probably produce the best results.”

Bobby Petrino talked about it last night, telling us he’s not sharing his plan. I wasn’t able to use the entire quote in the story, but here is some that was left out. You can get a feel for what Petrino is thinking as Arkansas closes in on the opener.

“We have different personnel groups that we can call out to get Broderick Green at tailback, to get Knile at tailback or to get Ronnie Wingo at tailback,” Petrino said. “Dennis, I just put him in. He’s a guy that I can just throw in there because he knows everything, so there’s times when I put him in.

“And that’s what we really did the last two weeks, what we worked hard on the last two weeks. That’s why the coaches were off the field, on the sideline in the scrimmages and really worked on how we’re going to substitute, what the process is going to be.”

So with that said, any guesses on who will have the most carries and rushing yards during the opener?

If it was Georgia week the answer is easy: Smith. But what happens if Arkansas jumps out to a big lead in the first half against Missouri State? Does Smith take a seat to rest for Georgia? And if he does, he gets the bulk of the carries behind him?

Should be interesting to watch the game and see the boxscore when it’s all over.

I wrote something in notes for Sunday’s paper on Arkansas’ freshmen class. It’s a talented group, but looks like one the Razorbacks won’t have to depend on as much as the 2008 bunch. Sixteen freshmen played last season. Six started the opener.

That’s a lot.

But now that game week is here, it’s a good time to address which freshmen will see the field? Some are pretty clear (like Ronnie Wingo, Cobi Hamilton, etc.) Some remain uncertain (like Darius Winston). Some depend on if there are injuries or depth problems at positions (like Alvin Bailey or Colton Nash).

We will probably find out more when the Razorbacks release their two-deep depth chart for the opener.

Until then, here’s my best guess at which freshmen will, may or probably won’t play in 2009.

Will Play
CB David Gordon
WR Cobi Hamilton
DT D.D. Jones
LB Terrell Williams
RB Ronnie Wingo

May Play
OL Alvin Bailey
P Dylan Breeding
RB Knile Davis
LB Austin Moss
TE Colton Nash
OL Anthony Oden
TE Austin Tate
CB Darius Winston

Probably Won’t Play
WR Neal Barlow
OL Colby Berna
LB Ryan Calendar
QB Brandon Mitchell
DB Jerry Mitchell
DB Ross Rasner
WR Lance Ray
OL Travis Swanson

I’m close to polishing off some notes that will appear in Sunday’s paper (or online at RazorbackCentral.com a little later today).

Lots of stuff to try to fit in, but can’t get it all. Much of the space I have was devoted to AD Jeff Long’s comments about the Razorback Foundation and future plans for facilities at Arkansas. So that’s what brings me to the blog.

One thing that stuck out that won’t be used in the notebook is something running backs coach Tim Horton said Thursday.

We all know Arkansas is going to be loaded at running back. Broderick Green is eligible and will compete for playing time with Michael Smith, Dennis Johnson, De’Anthony Curtis, Knile Davis and Ronnie Wingo. There won’t be enough footballs to go around. We know this. That’s what makes the preseason so critical for most of these running backs.

But Horton said there will be other ways for these guys to get on the field this fall: Special teams.

“One thing we’d like to see the running back role expand is in the special teams,” Horton said. “Those are some key plays that the running backs need to be on the field and making them. Whether they’re return guys or protecting on punt (team) or covering a kickoff. If you produce, you’re going to get on the field.”

Johnson obviously held the biggest role on special teams last season, averaging 22.1 yards and scoring one touchdown on kickoff returns. Smith returned five punts for 44 yards last year as well, but I’m guessing he won’t be used in that capacity this year. Is there a chance Wingo could be used as a kick returner, too, because of his size and speed.

Most of these guys won’t carry the football as much as they want in Arkansas’ crowded backfield.

But, according to Horton, they will have opportunities to make an impact. Will they make Arkansas’ special teams — special?

  Well, after two weeks of vacation, I have returned to work feeling refreshed and in the mood to make some phone calls. Of course, it might take me a few days to get back into the swing of writing.

  Anyway, I thought I’d drop a post on the blog regarding Ronnie Wingo, who’s a four-star running back recruit being pursued by Arkansas’ coaches. I spoke with the St. Louis native before Arkansas’ impressive win over No. 7 Texas on Tuesday night.

  Wingo will take an official visit to Arkansas this weekend. He’s expected to arrive Friday afternoon, and the Razorbacks hope to make a good impression on the record-breaking running back.

  “I just want to go down there and really have a good time, just meet some new people that I didn’t meet the first time I went down there,” Wingo said of his upcoming trip to Fayetteville. “Just enjoy myself and be around players.”

  Wingo said he plans to take all five of his official visits. Arkansas will be the third school he visits following his trips to Kansas and Missouri. He’s also considering the idea of taking an official visit to either  Alabama, Minnesota or Tennessee.

  Wingo said he’s gotten close to Arkansas running backs coach Tim Horton and quarterbacks coach Garrick McGee, who are recruiting the 6-foot-3, 212-pound former prep star. Wingo described his relationship with the coaches as “great.”

  Look for my story on Wingo in Sunday’s edition of The Morning News. In the meantime, it’s back to work for me. When does my next vacation start?