FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. — After taking their first off-day of fall camp Wednesday, the Razorbacks will throw on full pads for the first time Thursday.
Putting the pads on means the physical aspect of practice will get kicked up a notch. After a long summer and a tough first five days of practice, the Hogs are probably ready to start hitting each other.
Before camp even started, head coach Sam Pittman was already talking about the physicality of his team.
"We want to be a physical team on both sides of the line of scrimmage," Pittman said at SEC Media Days in July. "We want to win the line of scrimmage. We want to be physical and tough. To do that, it's hard to do. I was an O-line coach for a long, long time, never was able to lead a Power 5 in rushing, but we were able to do that last year."
Leading the Power 5 in rushing was a big accomplishment for the Hogs last season, and they are taking that same mentality of bully-ball into this season.
Wide receivers coach Kenny Guiton said he teaches his group to be physical and win blocks on the outside.
"You’ve never seen a football game won without physicality," Guiton said. "So it’s something I preach on that perimeter with our run game. I mean the backs aren’t getting touched until 5 to 8 yards downfield, so now we make the touchdown blocks. In order for that to happen you’ve got to bring a certain level of physicality to the game."
A big theme across all Arkansas coaches and players has been the development from strength and conditioning coach Jamil Walker and his staff.
"Coach Walker and those guys do a great job," cornerbacks coach Dominique Bowman said. "One thing that’s unique about him is he has the unique ability to get the whole team to buy in. When he walks in a room the whole team responds to him. The strength coach is with the football team all summer, so he’s kind of like the head coach in summer time."
Razorback players who saw growth over the offseason credited Walker for helping them get better.
"I feel like our strength staff and our nutritionist have done a great job preparing me throughout the summer and spring and put on a couple of pounds," cornerback Hudson Clark said. "My strength has definitely gone up this summer and it’s a big thanks to them."
With another year under Pittman and another offseason regiment with Walker, the Razorbacks are primed to be one of the toughest teams in the SEC.
"You have to give a lot of credit to Jamil Walker and his staff," tight ends coach Dowell Loggains said. "He's as good as any strength coach in America. When you come from pro football to college football, you always hear the stories about how important the strength coach is. You don't know it until you get here and see how much time they spend with those guys. The strength staff deserves a ton of credit. It's a huge reason why we win, and those guys have done a great job."
Putting on full pads for the first time is a big day at camp. Hearing the sounds and feeling the contact for the first time in a while usually leads players to push harder.
Guiton said it's all about making the guy across from you match you mentality, not the other way around.
"Don’t go out and see how somebody else is bringing it and match theirs," Guiton said. "You make them match yours. That’s the mentality we want and that’s the mentality we bring."
The Hogs will practice Thursday and Friday and then they will have their first scrimmage of fall camp Saturday. The scrimmage will be closed to the media and fans, but Pittman will hold a press conference afterwards that will be available on the HawgBeat YouTube.
