Arkansas has carries up for grabs in the backfield, and Saturday’s scrimmage was the best opportunity so far in fall camp for the running backs behind starter Trelon Smith to leave a strong impression on head coach Sam Pittman and his staff.
The pecking order for the Razorbacks is beginning to become more clearly defined after several backs entered practice last week jockeying for the No. 2 spot on the depth chart. While he didn’t have the statistics in front of him, Pittman named a couple of the standouts on Saturday as track star Josh Oglesby, who continues to stack up strong practices, and freshman Raheim “Rocket” Sanders.
What could have been the scrimmage debut of another highly-regarded freshman AJ Green will have to wait at least a little longer. He was held out on Saturday as he recovers from a minor injury. Pittman expects him back in practice at some point next week.
“I thought Oglesby ran the ball well. I thought 5 (Sanders) ran the ball well,” said Pittman. “AJ Green is a little dinged up, so we elected to hold him today. I wish we could have played him because this would have been a great opportunity for him. I thought Rocket ran hard.
“Our defense was very physical in their tackling. They missed some later on as the scrimmage went on, but I think we’ve found something there in 23 (Oglesby) and 5. 22 (Smith) is our starter, I mean, that’s how it is. But, I think those two had a good day. I don’t know the statistics of it.”
Another who had a notable showing was Dominique Johnson, who has made headlines in recent days after shifting over to tight end. Pittman made it clear that as he learns the ropes of his new position, Johnson will continue to get reps at running back, but his future for the moment appears to be as a tight end with the Hogs.
“Dominique, we played him at a little bit of running back as well today along with the tight end spot. I thought he ran the ball hard and well,” said Pittman. “Until he learns a little bit more of the offense, we’ll probably continue to use him as a running back and that’s what we did today. We had it planned out. We’re going to play him X-number of reps at tight end and let’s try to get him 6 to 8 carries on offense and that’s what we did. But to answer your question we’ve moved him to tight end.”
Pittman has put a heavy offseason emphasis on improving the rushing attack as a whole headed into the 2021 season. While having a talented stable of backs is obviously of high importance, being strong up front is equally critical. As expected early in camp, there were some missed assignments, and an improved defensive line made them pay at times.
Arkansas is currently without starting center Ricky Stromberg, which has caused some shifting around on the O-line in recent days. Despite some inconsistencies in the first scrimmage, Pittman is confident things will sharpen up moving forward.
“Well, not consistently. I mean, we had some good runs in there, and then some runs where we missed some blocks like what a first scrimmage is going to be like,” said Pittman. “We’ve got to become more consistent up front, which we have the players to do that. Right now, I think we’re going against a pretty good defensive front and using a lot of running backs in there. So timing and all those things has to get better, and I’m sure we will. I’m not concerned about it, but it’s not as consistent as what we need it to be.”
While there were some breakdowns, quarterback KJ Jefferson came way pleased with the way his backs were able to make something out of nothing when they needed to. He highlighted Sanders, who found the end zone, as well as Johnson and Smith as backfield weapons who excelled on the day.
“I feel like the running back position was very productive today,” said Jefferson. “When plays broke down in the backfield, they still found a way to make their own hold. I feel like Rocket had a great day today. He had a couple touchdowns. Dominique also had a great, productive day at tight end and running back. Trelon Smith also had a great day, as well.”
The Razorbacks will just have meetings tomorrow before returning to the practice field on Monday. Arkansas will have one more scrimmage next weekend in advance of its September 4 season opener against Rice.
