FAYETTEVILLE -- Arkansas Coach Bret Bielema has adjusted the team's weekly practice workload heading into Saturday's season opener against Louisiana Tech in an effort to have players ready for peak performances on game days.
Bielema said strength and conditioning coach Ben Herbert delivered a talk to the team about the changes, which mostly affect Thursdays and Fridays, and that he borrowed ideas from NFL teams and college programs at Oregon and Iowa in considering the plan.
The new regiment began last week, with what Bielema described as good results.
"A lot of teams have gone to de-loading the amount of activity on Thursday and increasing the amount of workload on Friday," Bielema said. "So when we get done with practice on Wednesday, they really won't have any type of high-level of intensity movements, other than Thursday in the weight room and with soft-tissue recovery, until Friday afternoon.
"Then we'll engage in about a 45-minute to an hour kind of an up-tempo -- not a walk-through, but not a practice either."
Bielema said the Friday work would be full-speed routes, full-speed coverage in helmets and "spider" pads, which are lighter than full gear.
"I know Coach B has done a lot of research and spent a lot of time with Coach Herbert and talked in terms of what is going to get us at our peak condition on Saturday," defensive coordinator Robb Smith said. "It's a little bit more like sprinter workouts and programs. Coach does a great job reading the pulse of our team. I think our players like what we did last week with that format. Their legs felt good for Saturday."
Bielema said Herbert believes the Friday activity will help the players build toward game day "instead of sitting all the way from Thursday until Saturday."
"A lot of teams have had success with it, both at the college and pro level," Bielema said. "We've been dabbling in it and this year we've implemented it. The first week's results were really good."
Injury report
Cornerback DJ Dean is questionable for Saturday's season opener as he continues his recovery from a hamstring injury.
Running back Kody Walker is "not full-go yet," Arkansas Coach Bret Bielema said in reference to his recovery from aggravating scar tissue in his broken foot.
Receiver Dominique Reed has returned from a high ankle sprain during the second week of camp and is expected to be the top kickoff return option.
Bielema said three players with sore shoulders -- receiver Keon Hatcher, running back Devwah Whaley and tight end Anthony Antwine -- all practiced Sunday at full strength.
Allen eager
Offensive coordinator Dan Enos said he thinks Austin Allen is eager to show his game-day chops after many months of preparation at quarterback.
"I think he's sick and tired of me telling him this and telling him that and coaching him on this and that," Enos said. "He's a hard worker. He doesn't want to let anybody down. He's going to play well."
Coach Bret Bielema said Allen's ownership of the huddle and his leadership is apparent.
"He was literally just a couple of votes separated him and the captains on offense, so he was very well thought of with that vote," Bielema said. "That tells me he has a voice in the locker room."
Quick recovery
Receiver Dominique Reed, who missed several practices with a high ankle sprain, is listed as the Razorbacks' No. 1 kickoff returner and a backup receiver.
"I'll give the kid a lot of credit," Bret Bielema said. "I know I'm hard on him. I'm hard on him because I love him. I think he's got a chance to be a special player.
"He was nothing but a shining star in the rehab. Being on time at 6 in the morning, [rehabbing] two or three times a day, getting himself back in a position to be out there. It was important to him, and that's what I'm excited about."
Agim inside
Arkansas' first depth chart of preseason drills contained two true freshmen at the back-up defensive tackle spots in McTelvin Agim and Austin Capps. Agim, who also works at rush end along with Karl Roesler and Tevin Beanum, worked inside on some pass-rush packages in the spring, and the coaches said they like what they saw there.
"He's been very productive in practice at that position," Bret Bielema said, referencing the "3-technique," or tackle, spot held by senior Jeremiah Ledbetter. "We were looking for a guy who carries a lot of the same things that Led does, and he fits into that category."
Agim signed as an end, got up to 290 pounds prior to spring ball and is listed at 6-3, 289.
"He wanted to play [end], but he's also really bought into this 3 technique," Bielema said.
Capps, who impressed coaches with his power during camp, will work with junior Bijhon Jackson behind starting nose guard Taiwan Johnson.
Keith's swan song
Keith Jackson announced this will be his final season as the color analyst on Arkansas' radio broadcasts.
Jackson, a Little Rock native, said he'll be stepping down after this season to watch his sons -- Koilan and Kenyon -- play college football. Former Arkansas quarterback Quinn Grovey, who has been a sideline reporter on the broadcasts, will replace Jackson as the color analyst in 2017.
Kenyon Jackson will be a freshman at Illinois this season and Koilon Jackson is a senior at Joe T. Robinson High School in Little Rock and has committed to Arkansas.
"As a father, I want to make sure that I take every opportunity to support my kids in what they do," Keith Jackson said in a news release. "It is a decision I wanted to make now so that I could enjoy this season while laying out a plan that will allow me to watch both Koilan and Kenyon as they progress through their college careers."
Higgins atoning
Louisiana Tech quarterback Ryan Higgins won't start against Arkansas on Saturday, but Bulldogs Coach Skip Holtz said the senior would play because of how he's responded since being arrested Aug. 5 for driving while intoxicated.
Holtz said Higgins has fulfilled his obligations since being arrested, including taking classes about the dangers of drinking and driving and performing numerous hours of community service before practice.
"When I sat him down and talked to him, he didn't ask me, 'How long do I have to sit? Is it a quarter? A half? When do I get to play?' " Holtz said. "He said, 'Coach, will I be able to go on the trip? Will I be able to be there with my teammates?' I said, 'Yes.' And he said, 'OK, I'm good.'
"He's owned up to it and realized he made a mistake. ... I've been very proud of him for how he's handled the whole situation."
Pettway demoted
D'vone McClure is on Arkansas' depth chart as a backup receiver. For this week at least, McClure is taking the roster spot of redshirt freshman La'Michael Pettway and is expected to play on special teams.
Bret Bielema said Pettway was taken off the game roster and demoted to the scout team after missing a scheduled weight-lifting session.
Bielema said the length of Pettway's demotion depends on how he handles it.
"I put the ball in his court," Bielema said. "He made the decision to put himself in that position, so I think he has to make the decision to get himself out of it. I think he's a guy who's got a lot of talent -- an unbelievable amount of talent -- he's just got to grow up in certain regards of being more accountable."
Extra points
• Junior college signee Michael Taylor arrived in Fayetteville on Friday and is enrolled in classes. Bret Bielema said the eligibility status of the defensive end is still to be determined.
• Arkansas has a 95-23-4 record in season openers and a 3-0 all-time record against Louisiana Tech.
Sports on 08/30/2016