FOUR DOWNS — NOTES FROM SATURDAY’S SCRIMMAGE

1. Pressure-Packed Week
It sounds there was a calculated reason for Arkansas coach Bobby Petrino’s extra intensity on the practice field last week. The coach said after Saturday’s 195-play scrimmage, which wrapped up the third week of spring drills, he was trying to put added pressure on quarterbacks Tyler Wilson and Brandon Mitchell to see how they’d respond.

“All week long we have really tried to be more intense and get after them and make them uncomfortable and put a lot of pressure on them,” Petrino said. “One of my philosophies in coaching quarterbacks is when they get to the game the head coach on the sidelines. I can just relax and play.”

Petrino said Wilson, in particular, appeared to handle the heat from the coaching staff throughout the week and again in Saturday’s scrimmage. He received the bulk of the work with the first-team offense, completing 34 of 51 passes for 418 yards with two touchdowns and one interception.

Mitchell didn’t perform poorly, completing 15 of 27 for 237 yards with a touchdown and two interceptions. Petrino said Mitchell’s scrimmage wasn’t one of his better outings, but it did come during what he believed was a strong week of work.

“He’ll yell at you, even if you have a good play,” Mitchell said about the added intensity from Petrino. “What that does is it gets you ready for if we’re out there for Alabama and it’s the fourth quarter and overtime, say you just had a bad throw and the game is easy to you because we’ve been in more hostile environments out here at practice.”

Petrino said inconsistency remains an issue for both quarterbacks, who divided more first-team work last week than they had in previous practices. They have four more opportunities to make an impression this spring before Arkansas moves into the summer.

“We’re still pushing for the leadership,” Arkansas offensive coordinator Garrick McGee said. “We’ve got to develop a dominant leader that’s willing and has enough confidence to lead our team. They’re still pushing forward in that direction.

“They’ve got a lot to learn, though.”

2. Big Scrimmage Joe
McGee could tell receiver Joe Adams was in store for a big scrimmage simply by the way he looked during the team’s breakfast Saturday morning.

“I just knew he was concentrating and he was into it,” McGee said. “He wanted to do his part and get our offense to have a good day.”

Adams certainly did what he could, leading all receivers with 12 catches for 183 yards with two touchdowns. He caught four passes on Arkansas’ first possession, which ended with a one-yard touchdown run by Ronnie Wingo. Then he pulled in a 35-yard touchdown catch from Mitchell and added a 59-yard score after catching a screen from Wilson.

The 59-yarder was the biggest play of the day.

“He had more energy than he has in the past and more leadership,” McGee said. “He’s one of those guys we have that can make everything easy on everybody. He normally has a matchup he can win.”

3. One-Handed Wonder
Safety Tramain Thomas turned in the biggest highlight of the day when he pulled down a one-handed interception at the one-yard line.

It was the second straight scrimmage Thomas, who is working through a minor hamstring injury this spring, turned in an acrobatic interception.

“I’m trying to get on ESPN,” Thomas said smiling. “But I’m not sure if that’s going to happen.”

Petrino said Thomas’ experience, coupled with his athletic ability, has helped him make both plays.

“He is a guy who has one of the best verticals on the team,” Petrino said. “I think Tramain’s four years of experience are really showing up. He knows what’s going. He breaks hard at the ball.”

While it’s true neither interception will find its way to ESPN, Thomas does have a chance next Saturday. Arkansas’ spring game will be televised by ESPN. Another one-handed grab would be noticed.

“I’m going to try to make a play,” Thomas said.

4. Extra Points
DE Chris Smith turned in a big scrimmage, collecting two sacks and two tackles for losses. He was especially productive early, getting a sack and two tackles for losses during the first two series against the second-team offense. “He had a great day,” Arkansas DE Jake Bequette said. … The offense committed four turnovers Saturday, three of which came from inside the defense’s 30-yard line. It led Petrino to say Arkansas “flunked the redzone” test Saturday. … Strange scrimmage stat: Wilson and Mitchell completed passes to themselves Saturday, catching batted balls. Wilson lost five yards on his reception, while Mitchell gained eight. … CB Isaac Madison (leg injury) did not scrimmage for the second straight week. And junior CB Darius Winston worked with the second-team. It left Jerry Mitchell and Greg Gatson working with the first team defense during Saturday’s scrimmage.

— Robbie Neiswanger • Arkansas News Bureau