FAYETTEVILLE -- Dre Greenlaw's recovery from a broken bone in his foot took longer than expected.
That hasn't been good news for an Arkansas defense that was thin at the position to begin with.
The Razorbacks (7-5) might have their sophomore linebacker back for the Belk Bowl against Virginia Tech (9-4) on Dec. 29, but Greenlaw isn't going to push himself into action after taking the long road back.
"With the injury, I know I don't want to push it and risk anything, but as far as me just being able to go out there and play, that's my main focus and goal," Greenlaw said last week. "If I can go out there and play and help out and contribute, then I'm down for it."
Greenlaw has gotten in a few practices the past 10 days as he and the training staff determine his readiness for full speed and live action.
Coach Bret Bielema on Dec. 12 described the likelihood of Greenlaw playing in the Belk Bowl as "an outside chance." He upgraded that Monday.
"Dre Greenlaw continues to look good," Bielema said. "We're probably going to make a decision with him later in the week, whether we're going full speed ahead with him or not."
Junior Dwayne Eugene and freshman De'Jon Harris have taken the bulk of the reps at Greenlaw's weakside linebacker spot since he went down with the injury Oct. 1. Although that duo has been solid on the second level of the Arkansas defense, the results have been different without Greenlaw and his absence clearly hurt the unit's depth.
Arkansas linebackers coach Vernon Hargreaves chuckled when he was asked how much the Razorbacks missed Greenlaw the past six-plus games.
"How much?" Hargreaves repeated. "I'd have to say quite a bit, you know. Not that the other guys didn't do what they were supposed to do.
"I just think he brings something different to the table. Any time you've got a guy who was a freshman All-American and almost led your team in tackles, you miss that. You just do."
Greenlaw, a converted safety from Fayetteville High School, is one of the fastest players on the Razorbacks' front seven. Arkansas already had struggled with a couple of dual-threat quarterbacks before an Alabama player clipped Greenlaw's foot in the first quarter of the Crimson Tide's 49-30 victory at Reynolds Razorback Stadium on the first Saturday in October.
Arkansas defensive coordinator Robb Smith didn't want to speculate on the impact of his unit losing both Greenlaw and versatile defensive back Kevin Richardson, who went out for the season with a torn pectoral muscle in the Hogs' 21-20 victory over Louisiana Tech in the opener.
"Those are things that happen throughout the course of a football season or a football game," Smith said. "We've got to do a good job of getting the next guy ready to step in and be prepared.
"Dre is a really good football player. I think he's only starting to scratch the surface of how good he can be, and it's good to get him back on the field and develop him more as a football player."
Greenlaw said last week he wants to "make sure it's 100 percent before I even try to commit to playing, but if I feel good and they feel good about putting me in there, then hopefully I'll be able to get some reps."
Greenlaw said his foot began to get a little sore at the end of his second full practice last week, and he also began to tire.
"But as far as just running and cutting, I feel 100 percent," he said.
Staying in peak physical condition while rehabbing from an injury to the leg is always a challenge, but head athletic trainer Matt Summers put forth a plan to help Greenlaw stay in shape while reducing the pressure on his foot.
Greenlaw said he did a lot of work in the pool, which helps reduce body weight, and got on a treadmill doing 30 percent of his weight about five weeks ago.
"I eventually got it up to 100 about three weeks ago," he said. "I've been running on that for about 20 minutes. And every day I'm just working with Matt trying to do rehab."
Greenlaw said his time on the sidelines was enlightening.
"It's so different watching it from the sideline rather than actually playing," he said. "When you're playing, you're kind of in the moment. When you're not playing, you're focused on the game. You see things that you don't normally see. You kind of understand things more, and it helped a lot just mentally because now I understand the small things rather than just my job."
He's eager to get back in the defensive huddle.
"What I think I can bring to the defense is just energy and leadership," he said. "Just someone that's been out there. ... When you're out there in the game and you get caught in the emotions and the hype, just having somebody else that can bring energy whenever something doesn't go your way, or just an extra pair of eyes."
Coach Bret Bielema publicly challenged Greenlaw to finish the semester strong academically when the linebacker joined his radio show with a couple of weeks remaining in the regular season.
Greenlaw said his grades improved late in the semester, and he's in good shape.
"The reason why he was saying that was because my first semester my freshman year, it was a little harder than it's been the rest of the semesters," Greenlaw said. "He was just making sure I was straight and my grades were up."
Sports on 12/21/2016