Razorbacks Report: In tight spot, Ball slides over to tackle

SCOTT CAIN
ARKANSAS DEMOCRAT-GAZETTE

Changes continue to ripple through the offensive line because of injuries, the latest move sending tight end Nathan Ball to left tackle.
Ball, a sophomore from Rogers, will start at left tackle Saturday against Louisiana-Monroe, Coach Houston Nutt said Tuesday.
Regular starter Shannon Money is out with an ankle sprain. One option assistant coach Mike Markuson considered was moving left guard La'Zerius White into Money's place. But White's backup, John Geitner, is out with a shoulder sprain so he decided to keep White at guard.
Redshirt freshman Mark Bokermann is listed as the No. 2 left tackle. He played more than two quarters Saturday against Georgia but was physically overmatched.
Ball saw significant playing time as a true freshman last November and even started against Mississippi State. He's inexperienced but at least "he's been there before," Nutt said. "It's not like we're just drawing things up in the dirt."
Bokermann's potential playing time Saturday remains unclear. Ball will play "as long as he needs to," Nutt said.
Moving Ball thins the tight end depth where Marcellus Poydras has started three games. There is nobody proven behind him. Fifth-year senior walk-on Tim Craig becomes the backup.
Poydras has been used as the primary tight end on receiving downs and Ball has been used more in the running game.
"We need to get Poydras where he can go 50 or 60 physical plays," tight ends coach James Shibest said.
When Arkansas fell behind early to Georgia and went to the passing game, Ball ended up playing just 22 snaps. Moving him to tackle will get him on the field more until Money returns.

TALLEY COMING ALONG
Sophomore tailback Fred Talley, Arkansas' second-leading rusher, might be ready to return to practice as soon as next week, running backs coach Danny Nutt said.
Talley broke his hand Sept. 23 in the Alabama game and has been wearing a cast. The injury will be examined next week, at which time the cast could be removed and a smaller one put on.
Talley could play with a smaller cast on his left hand, Nutt said. He usually carries the ball with his right hand.
Getting Talley back could provide a boost to the running game as Arkansas resumes SEC play Oct. 14 at South Carolina and then plays two weeks later at Auburn. Coaches won't know until they see Talley in practice how much conditioning he's lost and how much rust he needs to knock off in executing plays.
Talley carried 15 times through three games and averaged 7.6 yards per rush.

EARLY WORK FOR GARNER
Defensive end Randy Garner limped through half of Tuesday's practice and will play Saturday only if his sprained ankle has recovered completely, Coach Houston Nutt said.
That's unlikely.
Garner probably won't be 100 percent the rest of the season. A more reasonable goal would be to get him healthy enough to play Oct. 14 at South Carolina.
Garner missed most of the previous two weeks of practice because of his injury.

EMPHASIZING TACKLES
In response to Arkansas' poor tackling against Georgia, coaches put the players through full-contact drills early in practice.
"We went back to some basics, hitting, good first step, good form tackling," Coach Houston Nutt said.
Usually, Nutt avoids using full contact in practices to reduce the risk of injuries.

FADE ROUTE
After opening the season with 9 catches for 282 yards and 3 touchdowns, senior Boo Williams has been held to four receptions for 37 yards and no touchdowns against Alabama and Georgia.
Opponents have put an extra defender on Williams and refused to allow him to get open downfield. The passes have been redirected to other receivers but nobody has provided the big play like Williams did in the first two games.

DOING WHAT HE CAN
Mark Henderson leads Louisiana-Monroe in rushing and averages 5.2 yards per carry, quite a feat considering his supporting cast.
"He's getting better each ballgame," Coach Bobby Keasler said. "He's a big, strong kid. He's one of those types that if we had some mature offensive linemen, he'd be having a hell of a season."
Henderson, 6-0, 215 pounds, might sound familiar in Arkansas because he signed with the Razorbacks out of high school. He played in eight games as a reserve tailback and on special teams. When it was discovered at the end of the season that the NCAA Clearinghouse incorrectly approved his eligibility, he had to transfer and ended up at his hometown university.
Louisiana-Monroe's other tailback, Bryant Jacobs, is a transfer from Southern Arkansas. He has averaged 3.6 yards per carry.
The tailbacks have scored just one rushing touchdown.

DAILY HEALING BUT OUT
Fullback Adam Daily's sprained ankle is healing faster than expected but he will not play Saturday, running backs coach Danny Nutt said.

This article was published on Wednesday, October 4, 2000

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