Razorbacks Aiming High After Big Turnaround In '06

Thursday, August 23rd 2007, 2:30 pm

By: News On 6

FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. (AP) _ The rebuilding is over now _ that much is clear. After two straight losing years, Arkansas went 10-4 last season. Darren McFadden finished second in the Heisman Trophy voting. ESPN College Gameday came to town.

Now the question is: Can the Razorbacks top that _ or has this group of Hogs already peaked?

``Each year, these teams have a different personality. I can't say enough about these guys and how they have done things the right way,'' coach Houston Nutt said earlier this month. ``They are very hungry and they want to get back to Atlanta.''

Atlanta is where the Razorbacks were last December, on the brink of their first Southeastern Conference championship. They had won 10 in a row at one point, including a 31-14 rout against Tennessee with the Gameday crew in Fayetteville.

But after leading in the second half, Arkansas lost the SEC title game to Florida, the second of three straight defeats to end the season.

That left many wanting more, and the off-season was a turbulent one. Offensive coordinator Gus Malzahn left and was replaced by David Lee, and quarterback Mitch Mustain transferred. Those departures created hard feelings among some fans.

Nutt's tribulations since then are well documented. His phone records were investigated by fans, and a nasty e-mail sent to Mustain last season by a friend of Nutt's family raised obvious questions.

On the field, though, Nutt's 10th season at Arkansas could be his best. The No. 21 Razorbacks return McFadden, the spectacular junior tailback who rushed for a school-record 1,647 yards last season. Felix Jones, who ran for 1,168 yards, is also back, and Peyton Hillis might be the SEC's best fullback when healthy.

``We've got tons of talent,'' Hillis said. ``We can do so many things with that.''

What Arkansas struggled to do last season was throw the ball. The Razorbacks used a low-risk passing game that enabled Mustain and Casey Dick to rely on short throws while allowing the running backs to do most of the legwork. The final numbers weren't good: Dick completed 49 percent of his passes and Mustain 52 percent. In all, Arkansas averaged only 149.5 yards passing per game.

The Razorbacks disguised their passing woes in 2006 by putting McFadden at quarterback for some plays _ he was a threat to run, throw or hand off. But that could only take Arkansas so far. Now the pressure is on Dick to improve as a junior.

``He doesn't have to be Superman and doesn't have to be a hero on every play,'' Nutt said. ``I think you are going to see a different Casey because he is a different quarterback this year. The reasons I say that are, one, he's older and has some games under his belt. The other reason is David Lee.''

Dick might be without his top target for a little while. Marcus Monk, Arkansas' career leader with 24 touchdown catches, is expected to be out until at least mid-September with a knee injury.

Monk's knee is one of several knees that have caused Arkansas concern. In fact, the fate of the entire defense might rest on the ability of three players to recover from remarkably similar injuries.

Linebacker Freddie Fairchild missed most of last season with a torn anterior cruciate ligament, and safety Michael Grant sat out the last five games with the same injury. Then defensive tackle Marcus Harrison tore his ACL in March. Harrison has been recovering, and Fairchild and Grant are around full speed.

``We're very blessed to have them back,'' defensive coordinator Reggie Herring said of the three. ``If they weren't, I might want to coach the running backs this year.''

Herring's defense lost some key players, including defensive lineman Jamaal Anderson and defensive back Chris Houston to the NFL draft. But defensive end Antwain Robinson returns after 8 1/2 sacks last season, and Herring expects lesser-known players to step up.

``Who would have thought (defensive tackle) Ernest Mitchell _ he's now one of our most solid core guys we have,'' Herring said. ``He was a silly kid two years ago _ immature, bad work habits, wasn't really totally focused and committed. He's one of the most mature, focused, committed guys we have. Who would have thought that two years ago?''

Herring's defense came on strong at the end of 2005 _ and during the 10-game winning streak last year; nobody scored more than 20 points on the Hogs in regulation. Now Herring's group has some reloading to do, and along with the passing game, the defense may be the key to building on last season's success.

Last season was the closest Arkansas has come to winning the SEC in football. The Razorbacks don't want that resurgence to be fleeting.

``The only thing you can judge everything on is their attitude,'' Nutt said. ``How they do things and how they practice, so that is what excites me.''