The Good

• Wow.  A big “welcome to the party” to young guns Brandon Mitchell and Jacoby Walker!  No surprise that Mitchell could zip the ball.  His 151 total yards on 11 plays (6 rushes, 5 passes) speaks to his big-play abilities.  But Walker, who should really still be in high school, flashed his great promise by posting 207 total yards and 2 TDs in leading the White to victory.
• In years past, it might have been impossible to split up the team and have two equal squads that could play a competitive game.  Not so now.  The depth seen at most all positions was impressive, and tells you how far Bobby Petrino has brought this program in a short amount of time.
• Like last year, the defense showed the propensity to wreck havoc while forcing turnovers.  The 11 sacks and three fumble recoveries tells us that this squad will be opportunistic once again in 2010.  Defensive ends Demario Ambrose (6-5, 270) and Ryan Calender (6-7, 241) both led the way with two sacks each.
• Defensively, middle linebacker Terrell Williams (6-3, 237) and defensive tackle Patrick Jones (6-1, 309) really stood out.  Williams had countless big hits (7 tackles), including one on the goal-line versus Ronnie Wingo, Jr.  Jones was hard to move up front and managed 6 total tackles, 1.5 tackles for loss, and a forced fumble to boot.

The Bad

• After having near perfect conditions for most of the spring practices, the weather didn’t cooperate much Saturday.  The intermittent showers that plagued the Razorfest activities during the afternoon carried over during the game, and likely kept the big crowd away.  The UofA attendance estimate of 30,000 was laughable to say the least.
• The kicking game seemed a little shaky Saturday night.  Despite the fact that the defense wasn’t allowed to rush, we saw a missed extra point, one that hit the upright and a punting game that was average at best (38.0 avg. on 8 attempts).  Look for incoming kickers Eduardo Camara (5-8, 160, Cedar Hill, TX) and Russellville’s own Zach Hocker (6-0, 170) to challenge in the fall.

The Ugly

• Improvement was evident on the defensive side of the ball.  But on Saturday, that didn’t translate to stopping the “chunk plays” as the coaches like to refer to them.  11 plays of 20-yards or more were surrendered by both sides combined, including plays of 88 (TD), 50, 69, 38, 31(TD), 47 and 44(TD).

Bobby Petrino enters his third spring practice with the Hogs and, as usual, he’s shooting it to us straight about expectations for 2010.

“I feel good about the expectations of our players, the expectations of our team”, Petrino said.

“That’s the key.  We’re hoping everyone expects us to win, and if the fans do, then obviously that’s great.

“But the best part of it is when our players expect to take the field and win, and I think we’ll be that way this year.”

To get to the top in the fall, the 15 spring practices that begin next Tuesday will be important to this team.  Surprisingly, the absence of starting quarterback Ryan Mallett is not a huge storyline.  Here’s a few things we’ll be eyeing closely when the RBN crew makes it down to watch practice.

How will the three new assistant coaches mesh with the returning staff and players?  Defensive line coach Steve Caldwell, offensive line coach Chris Klenakis, and wide receivers coach Kris Cinkovich all make their debuts.  The SEC veteran Caldwell comes to Fayetteville after 14 seasons in Knoxville.  Klenakis and Cinkovich have coached with the Petrino family before, so expect a smooth transition there.  What’s their coaching style like…their approach?  We’ll find out.

How much more of the Pistol formation will we see in 2010?  Referred to as the “Shot” formation by Petrino, this look was sprinkled in last year and was a good set for the Hogs.  Considering Coach Klenakis was one of the innovators of the Pistol at Nevada (along with Nevada head coach Chris Ault), we’re expecting to see this formation more heavily used this year.

For a quarterback like Tyler Wilson, who has had some troubles under center, this formation might be a godsend.  Also, Nevada was one of the leaders nationally in rushing, much of it out of the Pistol.

Can offensive lineman Alvin Bailey (6-5, 323) and Anthony Oden (6-8, 328) push their way onto the first team?  Bailey and Oden both impressed as freshman a year ago.  The Hogs bit the bullet and redshirted Bailey, while Oden started one game and saw limited action in 2009.  Both are All-SEC type players at some point, and will emerge in due time.  Will that be this spring?

If there’s any linebackers on campus, will they stand up and be counted?  How long has it been since we’ve had a linebacker?  This spring, we trot the same, sad souls out there and try to find somebody, anybody that can make a play at this position.  Bueller….Bueller…anybody?

Off-season workout warrior Jermaine Love (5-11, 230) gets the first shot at middle linebacker, but look for sophomore Terrell Williams (6-3, 237) to emerge.  Regulars Jerry Franklin, Freddy Burton, Jerico Nelson and Bret Harris hold down the fort until incoming freshman Chris Smith (6-2, 230, Mt. Ulla, NC) gets on campus this fall.

ESPN’s Chris Low tabs the Hogs Defense as the unit that has “the most to prove” in the SEC this spring.  We couldn’t agree more.

“With all this talk about the Hogs being ready to contend for a championship next season, you can’t help but wonder how much better they will be on defense.  They were the only team in the SEC last season to give up more than 400 yards an outing in conference games (419.5 yards).”

A lot to solve in 15 practices, huh?  The Razorbacks will play their Spring Game on April 24th.  Here’s hoping the snow is over and warmer weather combines with the sound of popping pads to remove the sting of watching March Madness from afar.