COMMENTARY

Hogs buy in to ‘lean and mean’

It’s clear that thin — or at least thinner — is in with new Arkansas football coach Chad Morris.

Most everyone has bought in to the “lighter is better” mantra as Morris takes the Razorbacks to a spread offense and an attacking style of defense this spring.

That goes double for two of the big-time players to come into the interview room Tuesday after the third workout of spring drills. Quarterback Cole Kelley and free safety Santos Ramirez talked of the “buy in” after about 60 days of the spring semester.

Kelley is the 6-7 sophomore who made the “Steamboat” package famous last fall under Bret Bielema. He doesn’t want to run “a package” under Morris. He knows the shotgun spread from his high school days and is shooting for the No. 1 spot, not a bit player.

Ramirez is the 6-2, 195-pound senior with the reputation as a leader and a thumper. But he is more in tune with what Morris wants: lean and mean.

The two would like to collide a few times in Saturday’s first scrimmage, which is possible since Morris said there are often semi-live periods for his quarterbacks in scrimmages, at least allowing defenders to “thud up” the signal-callers. It’s the anticipated big explosion that most of the Razorbacks talked about in the interview room Tuesday night. All are looking to turn some heads of their new coaches and earn a spot in the depth chart.

“I hope so,” said Kelley on Tuesday of the potential for quarterbacks dishing out and taking some punishment. “I sure hope so. I think of myself as a game player, or a scrimmage player. I think when people are watching or the lights are on, I play better. It’s close to that time.

“I sure hope we get some live work for the quarterbacks soon. I love it. I like running the ball. I think that’s what my body is built to do.”

And, just to make sure, Kelley said he’s not going to waste away in this move to conditioning. He’s probably down a good 15 pounds from the high point last fall, but he’s no lightweight of a quarterback.

“I haven’t weighed today, but I was 265 the last time I was (on the scales),” he said. “I am not so worried about how big I might be. I’m just trying to stay with more lean foods, more protein. That’s going to make me better and not so fat and sloppy.

“I don’t want to be too light. I think that weight makes it harder (on the defense). I feel great right now.

“I like this offense. I like what Coach Morris has brought to us. We are still going to run the ball and be physical and because of what we are in, there will be one less guy in the box. I can see that is going to help us and I like it.”

Ramirez liked all of that. He’s focused on everything Morris and his new staff has offered. That includes the yoga sessions on Wednesday of the offseason program with Trumain Carroll’s strength and conditioning staff.

“Tru and his conditioning staff, they told us about yoga and I thought that sounded great,” he said. “I am a little lighter, but the main thing, my body fat is down. I went from 4.5 percent to 3.5 percent. I’m telling you, we love Tru and his staff.

“What that yoga did was give us more flexibility. I think we were a big, stiff team. We have gotten more flexible. We did a lot of running. I was all in for the yoga from the start and we needed that running.”

How much running?

“We ran four days a week during our winter program,” Ramirez said. “That’s a lot more. Honestly, we needed it. Like I said, we were too stiff.

“I don’t think anyone fought it either. No one has been fighting what we have done our first three days of practice either. We all like what we are doing.

“What we are doing is fast paced in practice, but what we did this winter prepared us for it. We needed more speed on this team to play in the SEC.”

Told the quarterbacks might be live at some point this spring, Ramirez said he won’t have to be told but once.

“Cole Kelley wants it to be live?” Ramirez said. “I know he does. If you are 270, I’d hope you would want it to be live, right?”

Kelley knew that was coming.

“Yeah, right,” he said. “I talk a lot of smack. I know those guys want to clean my clock. I talk so much those guys are going to want to come at me.”

Clay Henry can be reached at [email protected] .

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