From the Bench

Time to Move on to Football Season

Robert Shields

CLANG!

That’s the sound I keep hearing thinking Razorback basketball has hit rock bottom, but it keeps careening off of something only to fall even farther into the endless abyss making the road to recovery all the more dimmer and farther away. Yeah, they beat a hapless LSU team, but losing three out of the last four doesn’t feel so good.

So in the vain of Daffy Duck and Bugs Bunny arguing over whether it’s rabbit season or duck season, I am just going to declare basketball season over and move on to football season.

Spring practice cannot start soon enough. Maybe Bobby Petrino can hold one practice a week spreading it out over time so we can enjoy it and discuss it up until summer starts. But even if the NCAA won’t allow that, I am going to discuss football.

You now get my wish list for next season, and as I always do, I go in reverse order:

7) I hope Zach Hocker continues with his excellence as the place kicker next season. My advice to the coaches, whatever you did last season don’t change a thing, even his eating times. He is the best place kicker for the Razorbacks since – I will let you fill in the blank. I will argue that he is the best place kicker since they had to kick off the ground and no longer could use the old black block tee. I do miss that tee, though.

6) I hope that Chris Gragg continues to improve at tight end. With the departure of DJ Williams, a large whole will be missing in the offense. Garrett Uekman will also have to step up quickly to help Gragg fill this void.

5) I hope someone on the defensive line become a dominant player. The defensive line was good last year, but it was far from dominating other teams. It lacked that one great special lineman like Ohio State had in Heyward and Auburn had in Fairley. Maybe Big Tex can make a difference at that spot. It’s very difficult to find that kind of player the other team just can’t block, but it is what takes a good defense to a great defense.

4) I hope the Hogs beat Texas A&M in Dallas again to make it three in a row. Make no mistake, last year the Aggies wanted that game a whole lot more than the Hogs. The Hogs were just better physically and were able to just mail the game in at Dallas. A&M will come into the game next season all the more inspired and determined to win its first game in the renewed series in Dallas. A&M is improving. The game cannot be taken lightly next time.

3) I hope Knile Davis continues in his pursuit of excellence. He emerged in the middle of the season and became almost unstoppable. He will start next season as one of the top backs in the SEC. Here is to him exceeding all the expectations that will be put upon him.

2) I hope Tyler Wilson runs the offense as smoothly as he did in the loss to Auburn and the victory over Ole Miss. The team needs his precise management of the offense. He needs to run the offense as effectively under center as he does from the shotgun formation. The Hogs were very successful last season when they came out of the I formation and that will be just as important next season with Knile Davis in the backfield.

1) I hope Dennis Johnson has a great season. I hope he will be an excellent back behind Knile Davis as Davis cannot carry the entire load for the season. No back in the SEC can do it alone. I hope Johnson can step right back into his role as kickoff returner extraordinaire. The Hogs missed him badly last year in that facet of the game.

1a) I hope the Hogs run the table and make it to the national championship game and in that game they face Terrelle Pryor and Ohio State. And this time they get it right.

Other than not mentioning my pastor, boy did this sound like a Wally Hall column.


Send your hopes and dreams to fromthebench@yahoo.com.

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