FAYETTEVILLE — The answers Arkansas defensive coordinator Paul Haynes offered to reporters Wednesday spoke to his eagerness to accelerate the learning curve for a defense that is young in places.
The Razorbacks are having to develop new talent at linebacker and find depth at safety and cornerback during the 15 days of spring drills, which dwindled to 11 after Wednesday’s practice.
A reporter opened Haynes’ news conference by asking if the defense has been as sharp as the offense seems to be.
“Not in my eyes,” Haynes said. “We’ve still got a long way to go. The big thing to me is communication and effort. So we’ve got to continue to work on it.” Haynes later commented on developments at the safety spots.
“We’re still working on that,” he said. “Guys that have played for us - Eric Bennett and Ross [Rasner] - are doing a good job for us, but we’re still working on some of those younger guys to continue to come along.” Secondary leaders
Junior safety Eric Bennett and senior cornerbackDarius Winston said they’ve picked up on their leadership responsibilities in the secondary with the losses of Tramain Thomas, Isaac Madison and Greg Gatson.
“I’m not a big rah-rah guy,” Winston said. “I’m around a bunch of young guys and feel like I’ve got to lead by example. ... I work hard every day because I know I’ve got young guys looking up to me.”
Bennett is making calls in the secondary.
“When we call out personnel and the down and distance, I’ve got to be out there talking and let them know,” Bennett said.
Tank and ’Zo?
Arkansas assistant head coach and linebackers coach Taver Johnson was asked how a combination of Tenarius “Tank” Wright and Alonzo Highsmith would look at inside linebacker.
“That remains to be seen,” Johnson said. “That’s what the spring is about.
We’re definitely trying a lot of guys out, and we definitely want to make sure we get the right fit in there for our whole defense.”
Highsmith, one of six returning starters on defense, is out for the spring with an pectoral muscle injury.
Not yet
When defensive end Austin Flynn was asked about his long hair and bushy beard after his first practice, he said he was waiting for “the big bossman” to tell him to cut it.
Two weeks later, Flynn is still waiting to hear from Coach Bobby Petrino.
“He hasn’t said anything to me yet, so I’m just going to keep on growing it,” Flynn said. “Maybe I’ll trim it a little bit here and there.”
Flynn, who transferred in January from Los Angeles Harbor Community College, has been getting some firstteam work in practice.
“I’ve been making a lot of progress,” he said. “I’ve been picking up on the plays pretty quickly.” Comfort level
Sophomore offensive tackle Brey Cook is going through his second spring practice. He graduated from Springdale Har-Ber a semester early to enroll at Arkansas last January.
“I was surviving last year, kind of trying to learn things as I went along,” Cook said. “This year, I know a lot more. I’m very comfortable with what I’m doing.
“Obviously, there’s a lot to learn and a lot I need to improve on. But at the same time, I have a basis for what I’m doing and a foundation to kind of work up from.” Almost full go
Freshman running back Kody Walker said he’s close to 90 percent in his recovery from the stress fracture in his tibia, which required the insertion of a rod into his leg last fall.
“It felt pretty good to get out there and finally hit,” Walker said of a live periodat the end of Tuesday’s practice for the younger players.
Walker scored five touchdowns in three games last season before suffering the injury, which allowed him to take a redshirt year.
“It didn’t end like I wanted it to, because I got hurt,” Walker said of last season. “But to get a taste of it, that was good. I feel more prepared to get in there and see what it’s like.” Dorrell named
Former Arkansas volleyball standout Jessica Dorrell was named the student-athlete development coordinator for the football program, Coach Bobby Petrino announced.
“Jessica Dorrell will be a great addition to our football program,” Petrino said in a university release.
Dorrell, a former All-SEC player, will organize the recruiting process, including initial eligibility for all incoming football players, and will handle recruiting visits. A native of Aledo, Texas, Dorrell earned a master’s in business administration at Arkansas in 2010 and has worked at the Razorback Foundation since 2009.
Arrival
Assistant head coach Taver Johnson said his wife, Sharday, and their children, Tyree and Brooklyn, have made the move to Fayetteville from Columbus, Ohio. Sharday Johnson was a track and field athlete at Toledo.
Sports, Pages 18 on 03/29/2012