FAYETTEVILLE — De’Andre Coley never saw the pothole coming while talking on the phone with his mother as he walked to Arkansas’ Football Performance Center two weeks ago.
A bolt of pain shot through his right ankle when he stepped into it.
“For a little minute, I thought I broke it,” Coley said. “I just had to sit down for a little minute and think. When it finally stopped hurting, I just got back up and walked to the football center.”
It wasn’t broken, but it was sprained. The junior safety was already suspended for the first half of the Auburn game after being ejected for targeting in the second half of the win over Ole Miss, but didn’t play in the second half even after traveling with the team to the game.
“When I was in there watching the game, I was ready for the second half, to come out,” Coley said. “… I was prepared, ready to go.”
Good news for Arkansas and Coley: the bye week gave him an opportunity to let the ankle continue to heal up heading into a matchup with a Florida offense that features a strong run game.
“There’s nothing about that that has kept him out of practice or preparation for this game,” secondary coach Paul Rhoads said.
“It feels like I’m back 100 percent,” Coley said. “I can finally run on it full speed.”
Coley’s return means Arkansas can go back to its three-safety rotation after lacking depth at Auburn. The Hogs will have their most physical safety back in the lineup, a positive for a run defense that ranks last in the SEC in yards per carry allowed (6.4).
The 6-foot-1, 214-pounder is a big hitter, which can sometimes get him in trouble (see: two targeting ejections). But his two forced fumbles are tied for the team lead, even with playing in tandem with starters Josh Liddell and Santos Ramirez in addition to missing more than a half in Texas A&M game and all of the Auburn game.
He’ll get a chance to show out against his home-state. The Miami native said Tuesday he wasn’t recruited by the Gators.
“I’m just happy to be here,” Coley said.
Arkansas is happy to have him back for a matchup that caters to his skill set.