FAYETTEVILLE — Sophomore Eric Bennett has supplied a degree of stability to an unsettled Arkansas secondary.
Bennett has been steady and sharp, starting every game at strong safety this season in a defensive backfield marked by lineup changes amid fluctuating effort grades.
Bennett leads the secondary with 42 tackles and ranks second behind senior Tramain Thomas with two interceptions, the last one sealing Arkansas’ 29-24 victory at Ole Miss last week.
Arkansas Coach Bobby Petrino’s critiques are often tough, but he speaks highly of Bennett.
“He’s a great tackler,” Petrino said. “He’s a good playmaker. He’s really steady. He doesn’t make mistakes, knock on wood.”
Bennett has contributed critical plays the past three games, all Arkansas victories, when the defense has been up against the wall.
His chest-level tackle of Texas A&M quarterback Ryan Tannehill on a draw play at the Arkansas 6 forced a field goal and might have saved the game for the Razorbacks. Bennett’s interception at the Arkansas 18 off Auburn quarterback Kiehl Frazier of Springdale stunted the Tigers’ momentum in the third quarter, and his interception against Randall Mackey headed off a late Ole Miss rally after the Rebels had recovered an onside kick.
“He’s a ball hawk guy, plays big in big games,” Arkansas defensive coordinator Willy Robinson said.
Bennett, 6-0, 200 pounds, is not comfortable talking about his performance.
“I don’t really have individual goals,” he said. “I just like to give a team effort. As long as my team wins, I feel like I’m doing good.”
Bennett’s tackling has been perhaps the most secure on the team.
“For him to be a sophomore and just to step up and go into different environments and play at a high level the way he does, it helps out a lot,” senior linebacker Jerico Nelson said.
“Him and Tramain Thomas, they do a great job of reading the quarterbacks and making picks and making plays to change the game for us,” linebacker Jerry Franklin said.
Bennett said his time as a high school quarterback at Tulsa’s Booker T. Washington has served him well in the Arkansas secondary.
“It helps me because I can put myself in that situation,” Bennett said. “I can see what reads they go through and what the down and distance is.”
Petrino said Bennett probably wanted to be a receiver when he showed up on campus in the summer of 2010.
“We looked at him in camp at both receiver and corner, and I liked his skills better on defense than offense,” Petrino said. “Not that he couldn’t have been a really good receiver for us, because he could. But I thought he was special with his foot quickness and his size.
“It’s always nice to have ex-quarterbacks in the secondary because they understand what quarterbacks are trying to do.”
Bennett moved from cornerback to safety in the spring.
“I always like one safety on the field that can really cover in man,” Petrino said.
“Eric’s done a tremendous job moving from corner to safety and doing everything the coaches have asked him,” defensive end Jake Bequette said. “He’s just a very talented guy and a hard worker, and just a great teammate.”
Bennett has been up to his coverage assignments this season, and his play against the run has been powerful.
“There’s really not a lot of weaknesses in what he does,” Robinson said. “He’s making big-time plays for us in pivotal situations.”
Sports, Pages 17 on 10/28/2011