Razorback receivers have big day
Jimmy Carter
Issue date: 4/20/09 Section: Sports
Sophomore receivers Joe Adams and Jarius Wright are very similar in both their size and playing style.
Adams is 5-foot-11 and 177 pounds while Wright measures 5-foot-10 and weighs in at 174 pounds. Both are very fast and agile, capable of taking a short pass the distance or getting behind the defense down the field.
The pair spent most of Saturday's Red-White game one-upping each other while playing for the victorious Red squad. Wright finished with 125 yards on seven catches while Adams hauled in seven passes totaling 118 yards, including a 14-yard touchdown from quarterback Ryan Mallett.
"We feed off each other a lot," Adams said. "He's kind of like my brother. We're kind of like the same person. Whenever he make a big play, I make a big play. Whenever I make a big play, he make a big play. It's a duel."
But the duo wasn't alone. Senior London Crawford caught six passes for 85 yards for the Red squad and reeled in a leaping 23-yard touchdown from quarterback Tyler Wilson. Junior tight end D.J. Williams hauled in 6 catches for 41 yards and a 9-yard touchdown from Mallett.
Sophomore Greg Childs pulled in four passes for 86 yards and two touchdowns for the White team.
"We really don't feel like (Childs) is a second-team wide receiver," Petrino said. "We play a lot of receivers and he played a lot of snaps last year. He's first team in some of the sets that we have, some of the personnel substitutions that we make."
The game continued a trend of big plays that has developed over spring practice. Adams said the receiving corps has made a big jump from where they ended the 2008 season.
"We've moved a long way from where we were last year because we had a lot of different individual spots and we're all together now," Adams said. "We have playmakers at every position so we could bust a big play at any time. We could put up a lot of points."
Quarterback quandary
Wilson rotated between the White and Red squads during the game and said the reps accumulated by switching between teams was worth having the hassle of changing his uniform.
"I feel like I was playing musical jerseys a little bit," Wilson said. "It's fine. I got a lot of reps and got a lot of experience."
The redshirt freshman completed just 9-of-20 passes for 132 yards with one touchdown and an interception while at the helm of the White team. However, for the Red squad, he finished a sharp 14-of-16 for 169 yards and a touchdown.
"Both quarterbacks showed that they can execute the offense, they can make the throws," Petrino said. "They have to take care of the ball. It was great to get Tyler as much work with the ones as we did. He actually got a lot more work with the ones than we anticipated."
Mallett went 15-for-26 for 233 yards and two touchdowns and two interceptions, one which tipped off D.J. Williams' hands before being picked off by linebacker Jermaine Love for the White squad.
"I've just got to put (the pass) on D.J.," Mallett said. "They would have called it a ball if we were playing baseball. I've just got to put it on his body and we'll keep the chains moving.
Petrino said the starting quarterback heading into fall practice would be announced soon.
"I don't think there's any pressure at all," Petrino said. "I kind of know what we're going to do there. I think they both got good opportunities. I think we're having a wrap-up on Thursday, so we'll talk about it then."
Robinson likes rush
Arkansas defensive coordinator Willy Robinson said he was pleased with his defense's pass rush despite the fact that quarterbacks were off-limits for contact.
"(The pass rush) was very good," Robinson said. "We didn't have to create a lot of things. I thought the (Red team's) front four did well. I thought our White defensive front created some problems for our first team guys too."
Robinson said the defense started strong but must learn to play with consistency.
"I thought for the first half - with the exception of (Childs 50-yard touchdown) - I thought they were playing extremely well, very fast, very relaxed," Robinson said. "There was ups and downs as the game went on and that's were we've got to learn to finish and focus and we didn't do that very well."
Sophomore safety Tramain Thomas was a standout for the White squad, totaling five tackles and returning an interception 20 yards in the first quarter.
"Thomas was all over the field," Petrino said. "He made tackles all over the field and he's done that all spring. He's put a lot of pressure on Matt Harris. He's going to be a good, physical safety for us."
Adams is 5-foot-11 and 177 pounds while Wright measures 5-foot-10 and weighs in at 174 pounds. Both are very fast and agile, capable of taking a short pass the distance or getting behind the defense down the field.
The pair spent most of Saturday's Red-White game one-upping each other while playing for the victorious Red squad. Wright finished with 125 yards on seven catches while Adams hauled in seven passes totaling 118 yards, including a 14-yard touchdown from quarterback Ryan Mallett.
"We feed off each other a lot," Adams said. "He's kind of like my brother. We're kind of like the same person. Whenever he make a big play, I make a big play. Whenever I make a big play, he make a big play. It's a duel."
But the duo wasn't alone. Senior London Crawford caught six passes for 85 yards for the Red squad and reeled in a leaping 23-yard touchdown from quarterback Tyler Wilson. Junior tight end D.J. Williams hauled in 6 catches for 41 yards and a 9-yard touchdown from Mallett.
Sophomore Greg Childs pulled in four passes for 86 yards and two touchdowns for the White team.
"We really don't feel like (Childs) is a second-team wide receiver," Petrino said. "We play a lot of receivers and he played a lot of snaps last year. He's first team in some of the sets that we have, some of the personnel substitutions that we make."
The game continued a trend of big plays that has developed over spring practice. Adams said the receiving corps has made a big jump from where they ended the 2008 season.
"We've moved a long way from where we were last year because we had a lot of different individual spots and we're all together now," Adams said. "We have playmakers at every position so we could bust a big play at any time. We could put up a lot of points."
Quarterback quandary
Wilson rotated between the White and Red squads during the game and said the reps accumulated by switching between teams was worth having the hassle of changing his uniform.
"I feel like I was playing musical jerseys a little bit," Wilson said. "It's fine. I got a lot of reps and got a lot of experience."
The redshirt freshman completed just 9-of-20 passes for 132 yards with one touchdown and an interception while at the helm of the White team. However, for the Red squad, he finished a sharp 14-of-16 for 169 yards and a touchdown.
"Both quarterbacks showed that they can execute the offense, they can make the throws," Petrino said. "They have to take care of the ball. It was great to get Tyler as much work with the ones as we did. He actually got a lot more work with the ones than we anticipated."
Mallett went 15-for-26 for 233 yards and two touchdowns and two interceptions, one which tipped off D.J. Williams' hands before being picked off by linebacker Jermaine Love for the White squad.
"I've just got to put (the pass) on D.J.," Mallett said. "They would have called it a ball if we were playing baseball. I've just got to put it on his body and we'll keep the chains moving.
Petrino said the starting quarterback heading into fall practice would be announced soon.
"I don't think there's any pressure at all," Petrino said. "I kind of know what we're going to do there. I think they both got good opportunities. I think we're having a wrap-up on Thursday, so we'll talk about it then."
Robinson likes rush
Arkansas defensive coordinator Willy Robinson said he was pleased with his defense's pass rush despite the fact that quarterbacks were off-limits for contact.
"(The pass rush) was very good," Robinson said. "We didn't have to create a lot of things. I thought the (Red team's) front four did well. I thought our White defensive front created some problems for our first team guys too."
Robinson said the defense started strong but must learn to play with consistency.
"I thought for the first half - with the exception of (Childs 50-yard touchdown) - I thought they were playing extremely well, very fast, very relaxed," Robinson said. "There was ups and downs as the game went on and that's were we've got to learn to finish and focus and we didn't do that very well."
Sophomore safety Tramain Thomas was a standout for the White squad, totaling five tackles and returning an interception 20 yards in the first quarter.
"Thomas was all over the field," Petrino said. "He made tackles all over the field and he's done that all spring. He's put a lot of pressure on Matt Harris. He's going to be a good, physical safety for us."
Be the first to comment on this story