Razorbacks spring football report

CB Pulley delivers on 2nd chance

Arkansas defensive back Ryan Pulley (11) celebrates after breaking up a pass intended for Mississippi State Bulldogs Fred Ross (8) on Saturday, Nov. 19, 2016, at Davis Wade Stadium in Starkville, Miss., during the second quarter.
Arkansas defensive back Ryan Pulley (11) celebrates after breaking up a pass intended for Mississippi State Bulldogs Fred Ross (8) on Saturday, Nov. 19, 2016, at Davis Wade Stadium in Starkville, Miss., during the second quarter.

FAYETTEVILLE -- Austin Allen and Deon Stewart combined for a 9-yard gain on a slant pass in front of junior cornerback Ryan Pulley in Saturday's football scrimmage for the University of Arkansas, Fayetteville.

Allen had La'Michael Pettway in his sights on a slant on the next snap on the right side of the formation, also against Pulley.

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The second one didn't go so well. Pulley arrived at the same time as the ball and his collision with Pettway, one of the hardest on the day for the Arkansas defense, knocked the ball free for an incomplete pass.

"I just read the quarterback," Pulley said. "I knew it was coming because I think on the first one they got like 8 yards. I was a little bit deep and out of my technique.

"On the second time, I think it was third down and they were trying to get the first down. So I read the quarterback well and made a good play on the ball."

"I think he probably knew it was coming from the alignment and everything like that," Allen said. "That's why he's a good player."

"Yeah, I feel like Pulley makes great plays, man," Pettway said. "I got my hands on it, should have secured it. But just as I was securing it, Pulley hit me. It was one of those 50-50 balls I've got to come down with."

Heavier load

The Razorbacks held a 135-play scrimmage Saturday, the longest spring scrimmage in four years under Coach Bret Bielema.

"We knew it was going to be a longer scrimmage," quarterback Austin Allen said. "We all had the right mindset coming into it. Once we got to about 115, 130 [plays], we knew it was a long scrimmage, but I thought the guys handled it well, especially going up-tempo at the end of practice. No one loafed. They kept playing hard."

The scrimmage occurred on the sixth workout of spring, the same practice number in which the Razorbacks conducted a 100-play scrimmage last spring.

"Yeah, we've got a new defense and we wanted to get that going," cornerback Ryan Pulley said. "We prepared for it ... and I think we did pretty good."

In 2015, Bielema had his team run 70 plays of live tackling in the sixth spring practice, followed by a 122-play scrimmage the following Saturday. That was the previous high mark for scrimmage snaps in a spring workout under Bielema.

In 2014, the Razorbacks held 101-play scrimmages on their sixth and ninth practices days of the spring session.

Bielema's first team in 2013 had a 74-play scrimmage on its sixth practice and a 101-play live-tacking workout the next Saturday.

Pettway picks up

Arkansas receivers coach Michael Smith told reporters last week that he got ticked off when receiver La'Michael Pettway said he was "laying back" as a freshman, waiting for his turn with Arkansas' receivers.

"He expected me to go out there and attack it," Pettway said Tuesday. "He asked me the other day could I have been an all-SEC freshman, but he said he didn't know because I laid back and I didn't attack it like he expected me to."

Pettway has impressed the coaching staff with his drive to learning the playbook and being more mature on and off the field.

"Having five great payers in front of me, the Drew Morgans, Keon Hatchers and Dominique Reeds, it makes you more mature," Pettway said. "I mean sitting back and learning the playbook, that helped me a lot."

Making moves

Sophomore Austin Capps, who took first-team reps at nose guard Saturday, said the new defensive schemes under Paul Rhoads have made the players happier.

"It gives us more movement," Capps said. "You don't have to stay stationary and take on blocks like we did last year."

Capps said the defense, which did not have pre-snap movement or stunting during Saturday's scrimmage, added more in that area Tuesday.

"This next scrimmage, we'll be able to do a little more movement than we did and see how it goes," he said.

$1.4M to GSU

Arkansas has agreed to pay Georgia Southern a game guarantee of $1.4 million when the teams play on Sept. 18, 2021. The financial guarantee was obtained via a public records request by the Savannah (Ga.) Morning News.

The University of Arkansas provided a copy of the game contract to the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette via a public records request March 7, but the payment was redacted by university officials, citing a "competitive advantage exemption" for not disclosing it.

The Razorbacks and Golden Eagles have never played in football. The venue for the game, per the contract, will either be in Fayetteville or Little Rock. The game officials will be assigned by the SEC.

Coming up

Arkansas conducted a closed practice Tuesday and will do the same Thursday as it moves past the halfway point of spring drills with the eighth workout. There has been no word yet on whether Saturday's scrimmage will be open to the public or members of the media.

New 'board'

Work on a structure to house a new south end zone video board was started Tuesday evening by Barnhart Crane and Rigging at Reynolds Razorback Stadium. Barnhart, which is working in tandem with Derr and Isbell Construction, is using a 275-ton LinkBelt crane to work on the 170-foot wide, 50-foot tall scoreboard, which will be in use for the 2017 season. The south end zone will house the 167 foot by 38 foot video board that had been in the north end zone since 2012.

Sports on 04/12/2017

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