Correction: Arkansas Razorbacks receiver Anthony Antwine left Tuesday’s football practice with what appeared to be a lower leg injury. The receiver was misidentified in this article.
FAYETTEVILLE -- Arkansas defensive coordinator Robb Smith said his unit has shown constant improvement through the course of spring and responded well after allowing solid gains on four of the first five plays in Saturday's scrimmage.
"I thought we got off to a little bit of a slow start defensively," Smith said. "We got better as the day went on, especially in terms of tackling. I thought our offense did a really nice job taking care of the football, which is a positive for our football team."
Coach Bret Bielema admitted that he thought Smith was being tough on himself after his unit missed a few tackles, mostly against tailback Alex Collins, on Saturday.
"We're not where we want to be there yet, but you know it was the first scrimmage," Smith said of Bielema's evaluation. "Maybe I look at it through a different set of glasses. ... We're pleased with the effort. Tackling is the name of the game.
"In the SEC West, you need to tackle at a very high level."
Beanum soars
Defensive end Tevin Beanum played so well in Saturday's scrimmage that he worked as a starter Tuesday.
"He earned it," defensive line coach Rory Segrest said. "He graded out better than all our other defensive linemen on Saturday."
Segrest said Beanum, a redshirt sophomore from Forrest City, did a good job with gap control, played the run well and showed an improved pass rush.
Beanum worked Tuesday at the rush end spot with Deatrich Wise.
Moving it
The Razorbacks changed their venue for Tuesday's work because of stiff winds in Northwest Arkansas. The team practiced inside Reynolds Razorback Stadium to minimize the effect of the gusting winds, which still caused a few passes to float and flutter.
Heartbreaker
Safety Rohan Gaines, who was suspended for the Texas Bowl by Coach Bret Bielema for an undisclosed disciplinary reason, said he's working hard to regain the coaches' trust.
"I messed up and made a mistake and I learned from it," Gaines said. "It was heartbreaking being at home and not being able to be out there with my teammates.
Bielema reinstated Gaines for the spring.
"Coach B called me in and told me he was going to give me an opportunity again," Gaines said. "I told him that was a blessing. I didn't care what I had to do after that. Whatever it was I had to do, I was going to do it."
Injury update
Receiver Keon Hatcher (bruised knee) joined teammates on the field after his rehab work. He is expected to miss another week or more.
Tight end Alex Voelzke (back) took part in the workout after missing Saturday's scrimmage.
Defensive end Mitchell Loewen, who underwent shoulder surgery after the season, wore a green no-contact jersey and had limited duties for the first time this spring.
Reserve tailback Denzel Evans, who was "dinged up" in Saturday's scrimmage, according to Bret Bielema, was held out of practice. That gave Connor McPherson second-team snaps at the position, with Jonathan Williams and Alex Collins splitting snaps with the starters.
Walk-on receiver Cameron Colbert was carted from the field with what appeared to be a lower leg injury.
Ledbetter leap
Junior college transfer Jeremiah Ledbetter played mostly at defensive end Tuesday after opening the spring inside.
"Just trying to give him a look right there," defensive line coach Rory Segrest said. "He's a talented guy that can do a lot of different things for us.
"We tried him inside last week, and it looks like we're going to have some pretty good depth there, so we're going to try him outside."
Ellis runs
Brooks Ellis said he's enjoying the move from middle linebacker to weakside linebacker, where he had 10 tackles in the first scrimmage.
"I actually like 'Will' a little bit better than 'Mike' at this point," said Ellis, who had 10 tackles in Saturday's scrimmage. "I like to run and be out in space a little bit better.
"The scrimmage on Saturday, it was fun being out there and playing well. I liked it."
Special dates
Arkansas announced its special football dates for 2015, including homecoming weekend centered on its Oct. 31 game against Tennessee-Martin.
The other specialty dates are the Hall of Honor and Military Appreciation game for the Sept. 5 opener against Texas-El Paso, the family weekend Sept. 19 against Texas Tech, the Razorback Foundation Appreciation game Oct. 24 against Auburn and the annual Southwest Classic on Sept. 26 against Texas A&M. Senior Day will be against Missouri in the season finale on Nov. 28.
Sports on 04/08/2015