By Robbie Neiswanger
rneiswanger@arkansasnews.com
FAYETTEVILLE — Arkansas coach Bobby Petrino was asked Monday about the eight players who made their first starts of the season in the 63-27 win against Eastern Michigan.
Petrino paused for a second. Then needed clarification.
“Was there eight of them?” Petrino asked. “I didn’t even know there was that many.”
Arkansas made numerous changes to its starting lineup during the nonconference win, shaking up the roster after two straight losses. Players said it was clear the coaching staff was trying to send a message — if they didn’t perform on the practice field, they wouldn’t be in the lineup when the Razorbacks took the field.
It was easy to do against the Eagles, who have started the season 0-8. But Petrino said the practice will continue as the Razorbacks prepare to play South Carolina on Saturday.
“We’re just going to continue to grade practice and really make sure that the guys we put out on the field put in great effort in practice,” Petrino said. “I think we got better as a team (last week) because we practiced with a good tempo, practiced fast and guys were competing. As the week went on, it was more and more competitive to make sure that they got good effort grades for practice.”
Arkansas indicated changes could be in store during practices last week. The Razorbacks also made it obvious on gameday, when a release in the press box prior to kickoff stated several new starters were expected. It said starters “are based on the evaluation by the UA coaching staff of effort given each day in practice this week.”
Six new defensive players — defensive end Damario Ambrose, defensive tackle Alfred Davis, linebackers Terrell Williams and Bret Harris, cornerback David Gordon and safety Anthony Leon — started. So did running back Broderick Green and wide receiver Reggie Fish.
Arkansas quarterback Ryan Mallett said it was an indication that practice performance does matter.
“That’s definitely the point that was trying to be made,” Mallett said. “Don’t get satisfied just because you’re in a starting position this week.”
Petrino said the emphasis had nothing to do with the amount of effort in practice slipping, though. Instead, it was more of a response to Arkansas’ consecutive losses.
“Sometimes when you don’t do well, you come back and say, if I’m going to get beat, I’m going to get beat with 22 guys who want to practice hard every play,” Petrino said.
The changes didn’t leave former starters on the sideline for long. Regulars like linebacker Jerry Franklin, safety Matt Harris and receiver Greg Childs played plenty.
But the shake-up left the Razorbacks with the understanding that they will be competing for jobs when practice resumes this afternoon.
“It made practice more competitive in a way,” Arkansas safety Elton Ford said. “If you don’t play hard, you’re not going to start. Playing is a big thing. So saying he’s not going to start the guys he usually starts if they don’t play hard, in a way, try to make us compete harder.”
