Cornelius improved by knowledge

FAYETTEVILLE -- Jared Cornelius could have used a redshirt season, but Arkansas lacked depth at wide receiver in 2014.

So Cornelius found himself playing in the SEC as a 175-pound true freshman.

"Honestly, my first couple games I was just trying not to get killed out there," Cornelius said. "Everything was moving pretty fast."

Two seasons and 30 pounds later, Cornelius not only survived, he has thrived to become one of the SEC's top receivers.

Cornelius has 22 catches for 448 yards and 4 touchdowns heading into Saturday's game at Auburn. His 20.4-yard per reception average leads the SEC.

Cornelius, who missed the Razorbacks' 42-3 victory over Texas State to rest a sore back, also has 7 carries for 45 yards and 1 touchdown, and 6 punt returns for 39 yards.

"Body control, ability to make plays, the confidence that he has," said Arkansas offensive coordinator Dan Enos, rattling off Cornelius' attributes. "He's just a really, really good football player, and he can do a lot of things very, very well."

Cornelius, a 5-11 junior from Shreveport Evangel Christian Academy, is up to 205 pounds. He showed his strength against Alabama's physical defensive backs -- referred to as "clutchy" and "grabby" by Enos -- with five catches for a career-high 146 yards.

"Playing in the SEC West, cornerbacks and safeties are going to want to put their hands on you and hold you as much as they can," Cornelius said. "So as receivers, we've had to get in the weight room and get stronger and learn how to use our hands to get those guys off of us."

Alabama was the third consecutive opponent Cornelius had 100 or more receiving yards against, along with 126 and 106 in the Texas A&M and Alcorn State games, respectively. He became the third Razorback with three 100-yard receiving games in a row, joining Mike Reppond in 1971 and Anthony Lucas in 1996.

"It's great being in the records book, but we only won one out of those three games," Cornelius said. "I didn't come here for stats. I came here to win."

Cornelius' streak of 100-yard receiving games ended against Ole Miss last week when he had three catches for 40 yards, but he scored the game-winning touchdown on a 6-yard run with 2:20 left to lift Arkansas to a 34-30 victory.

On the play, Cornelius motioned into the backfield, took a handoff from quarterback Austin Allen, and cut through a gap at left end and into the end zone with the Rebels moving to seal off the perimeter.

"That play was a designed outside run, and he took that look, stuck that left foot in the ground and went vertical on the touchdown," Arkansas Coach Bret Bielema said. "Which was purely just instincts."

Cornelius had two rushing touchdowns last season, with a 69-yarder at LSU and 14-yarder against Kansas State in the Liberty Bowl.

"Some guys, when they run as a wide receiver, everything's full speed and they just sprint and they miss cuts," Enos said. "Jared is very good on those things because he has great patience, great tempo and great vision."

Allen, in his first season as a starter, has built a strong rapport rapidly with Cornelius.

"It's just a comfort level with him out there," Allen said. "It feels like he's always open for me. He understands the offense just like a quarterback."

Senior receiver Keon Hatcher said he's not surprised by Cornelius' production.

"He's playing very big for us, but I expect that out of J-Red," said Hatcher, using Cornelius' nickname. "As you get older, the game starts to slow down for you. You get the better, bigger picture of the game.

"I think that's coming to J-Red now. He's seeing everything, and he's just going out there making plays."

Cornelius got off to a strong start last season with six catches for 116 yards in the first two games before breaking his left arm when he was tackled at the end of a 34-yard catch and run against Texas Tech.

The arm was fractured in two places, but Cornelius was back in action after missing four games. He finished the season with 24 catches for 393 yards and 3 touchdowns.

"Whenever he said he was going to try to give it a go about two or three weeks after he got hurt, we were like, 'You're crazy, man,' " Allen said. "But he went out there and he played well. He's a really tough kid."

Cornelius said the key to his fast comeback was the work of Arkansas' training staff and the blessing from his mother, Sylvia.

"My mom's OK was the big thing everybody was worried about," Cornelius said. "I'm a big-time mama's boy, so my mom's opinion was a big deal as far as me coming back.

"We have a great training staff here that knows what they're doing. They came up with the best plan possible to get me back on the field."

Hatcher said Cornelius' hips play a big part in his success.

"J-Red's got great hips that help him get in and out of breaks really quickly," Hatcher said. "Great hips also help you create separation off the line against press coverage."

Enos praised Cornelius for his consistent practice habits and knowledge of the offense.

"You see a guy that's really businesslike about his preparation," Enos said. "He's off the charts with his football intelligence. He understands where to line up. He knows all the positions at wideout. He really understands how to get open. He understands leverage, change in speeds, attacking techniques.

"What he really has are outstanding ball skills. He can track the ball in the air."

Enos said it's been "amazing" to see some of Cornelius' catches.

"Where the ball is in the air, literally, and he's just coming out of his break and he has to fend off the defenders and use his body and track the football," Enos said. "I think he does that as well as anybody I've ever been around."

Cornelius said tracking down passes has a lot to do with attitude.

"Whenever you look back and see the ball in the air, and you've got a feeling it's coming to you, you've just got to turn it on in your mind to say, 'I'm going to catch this ball no matter what I've got to do to get it,' " Cornelius said. "If it's behind me, I'm going to get my body turned around, and if it's high, I'm going up and getting it.

"That's just been my mindset since I've been playing football."

Sports on 10/19/2016