FAYETTEVILLE -- The Arkansas Razorbacks appeared to dodge any serious injuries in their first scrimmage of camp two days after losing freshman receiver Kofi Boateng to a torn knee ligament.
Senior offensive tackle Dan Skipper and sophomore running back Rawleigh Williams III were dinged up during the scrimmage, but neither injury looked severe. Skipper missed a few plays after appearing to cramp up, but he returned to the workout.
Arkansas schedule
DATE OPPONENT TIME
Sept. 3 La. Tech 4 p.m.
Sept. 10 at TCU 6 p.m.
Sept. 17 Texas State 6:30 p.m.
Sept. 24 Texas A&M TBD
Oct. 1 Alcorn State TBD
Oct. 8 Alabama TBD
Oct. 15 Mississippi TBD
Oct. 22 at Auburn TBD
Nov. 5 Florida TBD
Nov. 12 LSU TBD
Nov. 19 at Mississippi State TBD
Dec. 3 at Missouri 2:30 p.m.
Williams had a slight limp coming off the field after having carries of 14, 8, 7 and 8 yards during a move-the-ball sequence. Trainer Matt Summers came over and consulted with the running back for a moment, but then moved on. Williams did not return to the scrimmage.
Freshman running back T.J. Hammonds did not participate after suffering what Bret Bielema termed a "tweak" to his knee during warm-ups on Saturday. Receiver Jordan Jones, another freshman, had a 102-degree fever and did not dress out.
Running back Kody Walker aggravated scar tissue earlier in the week, Bielema said, and was limited to four carries for 27 yards.
Boateng, a freshman from Arlington, Texas, suffered a torn anterior cruciate ligament in his right knee in Thursday's practice while planting on a comeback route, Bielema said. Boateng, who sent out a Twitter post on Friday night that read "Major set back, supreme comeback," was on crutches at the stadium.
Tevin Beanum, a projected defensive end starter who has been given excused absences to deal with a personal problem, watched the scrimmage from the stands.
'High School Harry'
Cornerback Britto Tutt intercepted a pass at the goal line on the last play of the scrimmage.
Freshman quarterback Cole Kelley was trying to connect with Tobias Enlow on a fade route, but Tutt read the play and was in perfect position.
"I've been impressed with Cole Kelley, he's got an arm. You saw that fade, though," Bret Bielema said. "He was going to throw that fade when he got the call in the huddle.
"He's just doing some stuff that's High School Harry, that you can't do in the SEC and play consistent. But he's got a lot of upside."
Latest line
First-year offensive line coach Kurt Anderson, who inherited a group that lost three starters, continued to go with different looks.
The new wrinkle Saturday was Jake Raulerson, a graduate transfer from Texas, working at first-team right tackle.
The rest of the starting line was Dan Skipper at left tackle, Hjalte Froholdt at left guard, Frank Ragnow at center and Zach Rogers at right guard.
Jalen Merrick split first-team work with Raulerson, who also took snaps at second-team center.
"Jalen Merrick has had a really nice fall camp," Bret Bielema said. "He's been a different man since he came back from spring ball. He's been really a nice, pleasant surprise to us."
Other linemen who worked with the second-team were Colton Jackson at left tackle, Deion Malone at left guard and Paul Ramirez at right guard.
Ramsey coming on
Redshirt sophomore Randy Ramsey is making the transition from linebacker to defensive end.
Ramsey had three sacks for 15 yards in losses while working with the backups. He moved to end at the start of camp.
"He's a quick twitch," Bret Bielema said. "In high school film, he was an outside linebacker that rushed the passer very, very well.
"If you remember back to his freshman year, he's a guy that we experimented with out there, as a third-down specialty player."
Ramsey sat out 2015 due to academics, but he was rewarded with a scholarship in July.
"I gave him a scholarship the other day and the place erupted," Bielema said of Ramsey's teammates. "It just shows the journey he's been on, and to overcome the things he's had is pretty special."
Persistence
JaMiichael Winston was not going to be denied during a bull rush against tight end Cheyenne O'Grady, who drew a flag for holding on the play. But Winston continued to blow past O'Grady and was credited for a sack on Ty Storey during the first half of the scrimmage.
Storey and O'Grady bounced back later on by hooking up for a 9-yard touchdown. O'Grady barreled through the final defender to fall inside the right pylon.
Punt perfection
Coach Bret Bielema said punter Toby Baker has been "knocking the snot out of the ball" in camp, but Baker showed he has pooch punting covered as well.
During prescrimmage special teams work, Baker launched an angled punt from the 40-yard line, which Ryan Pulley hustled down and caught at the 3 for a 37-yard net.
Coming up
The Razorbacks will conduct their annual fan day at Reynolds Razorback Stadium at 2 p.m. today, weather permitting. The free meet-and-greet session will last until 4:30 p.m. Gates 1, 12 and 16 will open at 2 p.m. The Golden Boot trophy, the Battle Line Rivalry trophy and the Liberty Bowl trophy will be on hand for pictures.
The annual UA Football kickoff luncheon, featuring speaking appearances by Bret Bielema and coordinators Dan Enos and Robb Smith, will take place on Friday at the NWA Convention Center. Doors open at 11:30 a.m. for the noon luncheon, which is scheduled to run about 90 minutes.
Sports on 08/14/2016