Like it is: Razorbacks call in a long-term bond from Jones

WALLY HALL
ARKANSAS DEMOCRAT-GAZETTE

FAYETTEVILLE -- J.J. Jones, Harold Harris and Cedric Cobbs were sitting on steps waiting on the hamburger dinner to end.
It was two days until the Cotton Bowl and Harris and Cobbs were ready to get the parties and preparation over with and get to the game.
Jones was just biding his time.
Jones had started his senior season in the best shape of his life. He had lost some belly, gained some chest and was ready, finally, to live up to the expectations that had followed him since Magnolia High School.
He had been steady as a Razorback, but never the feared linebacker that his size and speed had indicated he should be.
After two games last season he had 13 tackles, but as the Razorbacks practiced for Alabama, he broke his hand.
For a few weeks he was listed as doubtful, but as the season eased into November it became obvious he wasn't going to be able to contribute and a medical hardship was applied for.
Jones had not redshirted so it was a slam dunk he would get another year.
That night in Dallas, sitting quietly, Jones handed out some advice to Harris and Cobbs.
He told Harris it was time to step his game up and play every down as hard as he had against Michigan in the Citrus Bowl.
He told Cobbs to forget running the hurdles during the indoor track season.
Jones' logic was solid. If Cobbs was having hamstring problems, hurdling could hurt, but not help.
Then Jones turned and said very quietly, "You can write this down, I'm going to be in even better shape and more ready to play next year than I was this one.'
It wouldn't have been surprising if he had predicted he would win the Crip Hall Award as the outstanding senior in the homecoming game, he was so determined.
As it turned out, he would have been right again.
Going into Saturday night's game with Louisiana-Monroe, Jones had 32 tackles and was showing reckless abandon in his pursuit of running backs and receivers.
Arkansas led comfortably 17-0 when Jones buried any hope ULM had of a comeback.
Corey Harris tipped an Andre Vige pass and Jones pulled it in at the 14, raced straight ahead for 10 yards, put a juke on Vige and scored his first touchdown with his first interception as a Razorback.
In those few seconds, a loose-jointed game was over.
It was exactly what the Hogs had to have, what they may need every Saturday -- money from the defense.
Saturday night, like a week ago, the Hogs showed little semblance of a running game. Especially in the first half.
At intermission, the Razorbacks were averaging 2.7 yards per carry.
You can bet if the game had stayed that way it would have kept Lou Holtz up every night this week -- licking his lips and planning his payback for last season's 48-14 whipping.
If Robby Hampton hadn't had a 13-yard scramble to get the total up to 54 yards and two true freshmen hadn't stepped up a bit in the second half, it might have kept Houston Nutt up, too.
Freshman Radale Pearson got the second-half start and even though two weeks ago he was entrenched on the scout team, he showed some grit.
He ran hard, didn't fumble and blocked when Hampton was passing.
Finally, late in the third quarter freshman Brandon Holmes broke for 39 yards and a touchdown, and the Hogs broke the century mark for yards on the ground.
As the quarter ended, Holmes added runs of 8 and 13 to get his second touchdown against a tiring Louisiana-Monroe defense.
This was supposed to be the year of the running back at Arkansas, but Cedric Cobbs was lost for the year with a shoulder injury that required surgery and his backup Fred Talley has been out with a broken hand since the Alabama game.
Unless Talley can pick up where he left off -- he averaged 7.6 yards on 15 carries -- and the running backs build hard and fast off Saturday night's game, the defense is going to have to be counted on to go to the bank every week.
Saturday night, J.J. Jones cashed a check Corey Harris wrote.
It was the type of dividend the Razorbacks needed while frantically developing a running game.
Join Wally and Marcus Elliott live at 6 tonight, 374-9255, Comcast Cable channel 18.

This article was published on Sunday, October 8, 2000

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