By Robbie Neiswanger
Arkansas News Bureau • rneiswanger@arkansasnews.com
HOOVER, Ala. — Arkansas tight end D.J. Williams attended Southeastern Conference Media Days last summer. So the senior was considered a veteran Thursday, making his second straight appearance at the league’s preseason football extravaganza.
But there’s something Williams noted about his return trip regarding the Razorbacks this summer.
“The buzz is a little bit different,” Williams said.
Arkansas is no longer a team filled with casual curiosities. Instead, the Razorbacks arrived at SEC Media Days as the conference’s darkhorse darling, a team brimming with preseason expectations.
It’s a position Arkansas coach Bobby Petrino wants the Razorbacks to relish. While some quell the notoriety, Petrino insisted his team is enjoying it as he addressed the media in the Wynfrey Hotel.
“I think it’s a good thing,” Petrino said. “I think the one thing we can’t do is shy away from it. Let’s embrace it, let it motivate us, then let’s go out and do everything we can to make them come true.”
The reason for the buzz? Arkansas went 8-5 last season and finished the year by winning five of six (the lone loss was in overtime at LSU). The Razorbacks also return 18 starters, which includes every one of its significant skill position players.
Mallett, of course, leads the way after a record-setting sophomore season. The quarterback is part of a high-powered offense that gave opponents fits last year, but still has plenty of room for improvement.
“In the state of Arkansas the expectations are really high,” Mallett told the media Thursday. “We have even higher expectations of ourselves.”
The buildup to the season has been comparable to the expectations surrounding Ole Miss in 2009.
The Rebels had most of their key starters returning and were ranked in preseason top 25 polls. But the summer notoriety didn’t lead to the same type of success on the field last fall. Ole Miss struggled early before rallying late, finishing 9-4.
Petrino didn’t want to compare the two teams when asked about it Thursday, though. He said Arkansas is only worried about itself as the season nears.
“I like the high expectations,” Petrino said. “I think that’s why you’re in the profession. You want to have people think that you’re going to be good.”
A list compiled by the SEC shows where the Razorbacks rank in six preseason publications and Arkansas’ average spot is 19th. Lindy’s has Arkansas the highest at 16th, but all five (The Sporting News, Athlon’s, Yahoo! Kickoff, Phil Steele, and Blue Ribbon), include the Hogs in the preseason top 25.
Arkansas is also slated to finish second in the SEC West behind Alabama in three of the publications.
Williams said the Razorbacks understand it has to be earned on the field eventually. But he confidently told a group of reporters Arkansas won’t be overwhelmed by the buzz surrounding them in 2010.
“I think we’re to the point where we know we have the chance to be special,” Williams said. “Nobody is watching TV and are like, man, those guys are crazy ranking us so high. I don’t know who they think we are. We have the feeling we have the chance to be special … and we’re embracing it.”
