Arkansas Sports 360 - ArkansasSports360.com

7/12/2010 at 12:00am

It would have been apropos for Arkansas State to drape a Red Cross flag over its south end zone football facility at ASU Stadium since the start of the 2009 season. The Red Wolves suffered through 22 major surgeries to would-be starters and countless other injuries that decimated the roster and ruined a season that set up to be one of A-State’s best ever.

Instead of ending Troy’s hold on the Sun Belt Conference and reaching a bowl game with 15 fifth-year seniors, Arkansas State stumbled to a 4-8 season that saw five of the seven losses decided by a touchdown or less.

Of those 22 players who underwent surgery since last fall, 15 were still unable to participate in spring drills in Jonesboro, including incumbent quarterback Ryan Aplin, who played through a shoulder problem after taking over for senior Corey Leonard the last four games of 2009.

But the Red Wolves still accomplished enough over 15 practice days and touched on most of new offensive coordinator Hugh Freeze’s multiple, no-huddle offense to leave Coach Steve Roberts happy going into the summer.

“I thought we had a really good spring,” Roberts said. “I was real pleased with our progress with our new offensive system. I thought we improved defensively as well. We were able to give them bits and pieces of what we want to do as far as the majority of our offense. Obviously we couldn’t fine tune things because we wanted to give them an overview of all the options we have.”

ASU operated in a no-huddle style offense about 25 percent of the time last year, but Roberts, in his quest for more imagination on offense to match a traditionally stout defensive team, brought aboard Freeze from San Jose State to put more zing in the Red Wolves’ attack. Expect significantly more no-huddle and changing tempos to keep the defense guessing, back on its heels and unable to easily substitute various situational packages. Expect more of what college football fans saw last year from the likes of Auburn, which surprised many with its offensive style under Arkansas native Gus Malzahn.

Coincidentally, ASU opens at Auburn to start the 2010 season.

Freeze compiled a 20-5 record in two seasons at Lambuth College before temporarily taking the offensive coordinator’s job at San Jose State. A month and a half later, when Roberts’ first choice as coordinator, former Memphis coordinator Clay Helton, jumped to join Lane Kiffen at Southern Cal, Freeze returned to the Mid-South.

“He’s awesome,” Aplin said. “His door is always open. Even if its not about football you know he’s always open.”

Previously Freeze worked at Ole Miss under Ed Orgeron, and maybe Freeze’s biggest claim to fame was being the high school coach of Michael Oher, the subject of “The Blind Side.” The school and coach in the movie were fictionalized, but Freeze was the coach at Oher’s actual school of Briarcrest Christian School, and Freeze was instrumental in much of Orgeron’s recruiting of Memphis and the north Mississippi area. When Houston Nutt took over from Orgeron at Ole Miss, Freeze wasn’t retained, but found a job at NAIA Lambuth. At Lambuth, his teams averaged more than 40 points and 465 yards per game.

“Hugh has been great for our program,” Roberts said. “Our kids are sold on what we’re trying to do. They love what we’re trying to do offensively. We’re going to spread you out, there will be a lot of motions, lot of different formations, and it appears complicated, but our kids have picked up on it very well. It’s fairly easy to learn.”

Great Spring

Aplin said, “When one snap is over we’re up and snapping it again. It’s as fast an offense as I’ve ever played in and it’s going to help us. It will make us difficult to play against.”

While the Tampa, Fla., product Aplin was having his right (throwing) shoulder repaired and spent spring recuperating, redshirt freshman Phillip Butterfield from Lake Hamilton was able to get extensive work in the spring. Butterfield, too, was a surgical subject, tearing up a knee the first week of practice last fall.

“He was one of the reasons we moved spring back as far as we possibility could so he could be completely healed and could throw,” Roberts said. ASU concluded its spring drills April 24 with a wild Red-Black game that ended with a 53-51 score, though to be clear, points were awarded to the defense for certain plays made, too.

Roberts expects the third-year sophomore Aplin to be ready to go to start fall drills and that competition should be strong between the two.

“Whatever ‘it’ is, Aplin has it,” Roberts said of the 6-1, 213-pound sophomore who amassed 1,200 total yards in his four games late last year “He’s a competitor, he’s got a great knack for making plays. He takes care of the football. And he’s been productive in Division I games.”

Sophomore receiver Taylor Stockemer said, “A couple of times against North Texas, Ryan broke a long run, and I looked up and thought it was [tailback] Derek Lawson at first. Then, you’ll turn around in a game and he’s scrambling and throwing the ball 50 yards on the run. He’s pretty balanced as a quarterback.”

Butterfield was recruited by several major colleges as a likely safety out of Lake Hamilton, where he played offense and defense and led the Wolves to the 2008 state championship. But Roberts believed early on that the 6-2, 205-pound Butterfield was destined for offense.

“Phillip got 90 percent of the snaps in the spring,” Roberts said. “Obviously it was a great opportunity for him, and he made the most of it. He played outstanding most of the time. He’s very accurate throwing the football. I think he’s going to be an outstanding player in the future. I think Ryan is, too.”

In front of them, Roberts hopes he has an offensive line that stays intact. Much of the Red Wolves’ offensive troubles last fall, despite having Leonard and fifth-year tailback Reggie Arnold back, could be traced to the rash of injuries up front.

“We never experienced anything like we experienced last year,” Roberts said. “We started the same five offensive linemen three out of our 12 games. It was just impossible to get the kind of consistency and teamwork you need with the changes you have week to week.

“We were going to be pretty good in the offensive line and I think we proved that at Nebraska. I think we ran on those guys as much as anybody all year. We played well at Iowa against one of the best defensive lines in the country. But from there the losses just continued to mount, and we never got over the hump.”

Four candidates for starting roles still weren’t back by spring — ASU didn’t even have a regular center and had to call on defensive lineman Alex Kautai to handle the snapping — but Roberts is counting on them for August to compete for first-team roles. And Kautai may end up at guard.

Tom Castilaw and Eric Allen should be recovered and will battle for the center spot. Derek Newton (6-5, 313) is a potential all-conference performer at right tackle and “is going to be a key to the offense,” Roberts said. Delano Moore and Kiano Prater are competing for the left tackle spot. Sifa Etu played a lot in ’09 and took a big step up in the spring. Getting Drew Hilton (6-3, 302) and Castilaw (6-3, 297) back will make Roberts happier in August. ASU also was petitioning the NCAA for a sixth year of eligibility for Dominic Padrta, a guard who missed last year with a knee injury and was hospitalized his freshman year with a staph infection.

With Arnold, a consistent 1,000-yard rusher, gone, the running game will be left to the smallish Derek Lawson (5-11, 215) and 235-pound Jermaine Robertson, who clocks a 4.5 in the 40-yard dash and has bench-pressed more than 400 pounds. Lawson, yet another of the Red Wolves who battled injuries most of last year, stayed in it and then had a “great spring,” Roberts said. “He runs the football extremely tough and has outstanding vision.”

Freeze’s multiple, no-huddle attack will need receivers, and three players stand out at this point. Stockemer, out of Van Buren, made a late impact last season and then had a good spring, Roberts said. Allen Muse and Andre Smith are two more outside receivers with tall, physical builds who could be go-to guys, the coach said.

Stockemer looked around last season as Red Wolves fell left and right. “We just had so many injuries … people are hurting knees, shoulders. It was just one of those freak seasons.”

As for inside receivers, spring semester junior college transfer Dwayne Frampton demonstrated in spring drills some playmaking ability, Roberts said, while Lucious Henderson and Carlos McCants also impressed.

“We still need some newcomers to provide quality depth there,” the coach said.

Productive Offseason

ASU had one of its best ever defensive fronts last year, and former Sun Belt defensive MVP Alex Carrington has moved on to the NFL. Two other starters are gone. But Roberts believes he has replacements to field a front unit with depth.

Bryan Hall, who probably didn’t get the notice because of Carrington’s presence, is an all-star candidate, Roberts insists, and the senior had a solid spring.

“Without a doubt he’s the leader of that group,” Roberts said. “Bryan had a great spring. He had a great year last year. He’s extremely quick off the ball, very powerful.”

Hall, who said he mostly received Division II interest out of high school and didn’t have a lot of prep buzz, said, “When I first got here, we were already Sun Belt champions and had gone to a bowl game. My feeling was always to get back to the championship and the bowl game. So far I haven’t accomplished that. My senior year is geared to doing that.”

Hall said he went straight to the weight room after last season ended and began to work, and he said he didn’t slow down after spring drills when he went home briefly to Paducah, Ky. Hall won the spring weight room award with a 485-pound bench press.

“In the off-season I studied a lot of film, I did all the individual work in the defensive line. Somebody had to step up. I accepted that role,” Hall said.

Jeremy Gibson and Brandon Joiner should have one end position locked down, while Justin Robertson and Tim Starson will set up at the other. Amos Draper, who had “a tremendous spring,” according to his coach, will spell Hall. Nose tackle should be manned by Dorvus Woods or Greg McCall, depending on the situation. The athletic Woods provides pass rush, while McCall’s low center of gravity makes him a run stopper.

“I’m real pleased with the way those guys performed in the spring,” Roberts said. “No doubt in my mind we’ll have eight to 10 we can compete with in the D-line … We’ll have as much depth as we’ve had in a number of years, a lot of guys back with some valuable experience.”

Linebackers, though, will be the defensive strength. “I feel as good about our linebacker corps as I have since we’ve been here,” Roberts confessed. ASU will get back Darius Glover, who was a starter in 2008, but went out in the first quarter of the first game last year. Glover’s 2009 absence opened the door for Demario Davis to log starting time all year. Now, Glover and Davis will compete for the strongside linebacker spot. “I anticipate both playing a lot,” Roberts said.

Nick Nelms, a former special teams star who got his first start in last year’s finale, will join Nathan Herrold in the competition for the middle linebacker role. Javon McKinnon and Najel Byrd are penciled in at weakside linebacker. All six players are interchangeable in the various packages ASU runs. For example, while ASU is a base 4-3 defense, the Red Wolves were in their “nickel” (five defensive backs, two linebackers) package 70 percent of the time last year, Roberts said.

Roberts is comfortable with his safety spots, but ASU will be looking for new starting cornerbacks. M.D. Jennings will be returning from an anterior cruciate ligament repair this fall at one safety, while Kelcie McCray, in his first year as a starter, was solid in 2009. “He’s a big safety with a lot of range.” Jaquan Kilcrease and Graham Bates, the backups, also had good springs. “Bates was our most improved defensive player,” Roberts said.

Tausean Holmes and Mark Brooks will battle for the nickel position.

Cornerback is a question, with four players competing for the two spots but all four likely playing. Jaron Edwards and Walter Moody appeared to be the starters coming out of spring. Sophomore Chaz Scales saw starting action in two games last year. Julian Jones, who redshirted last year, should play a lot.

The other key loss for the Red Wolves was the graduation of Josh Arauco, who set a bucket load of kicking records in his ASU career. Brandon Parker exited spring as the place-kicker, but two freshmen will press him in the fall. Spring did not determine anything except that Adam Gaston will handle deep snapping.

Some junior college recruits who couldn’t come in during the spring may still make an impact in the fall, including defensive end Blake Chavis, defensive tackle Alphonso Simmons, corner-back Darrell Feemster and safety A.J. Hill.

Some around the ASU community believe that last year’s high hopes with a large and experienced senior class, followed by the gut-wrenching defeats and a disappointing 4-8 record, have placed Roberts firmly on the hot seat. On the other hand, playing three or four road “money” games a year, it is hard to quantify in ASU terms what “success” should be.

Some boosters may believe better than .500 is expected — and 6-6 three times is the best mark Roberts has managed — but that’s easy to say but perhaps harder to manage when must-play financial-windfall road games against BCS powers are balanced with results in a competitive mid-major league.

Roberts admits that the recent results have probably amped the pressure for success in Jonesboro.

“But nobody wants to be as successful as I want to be,” Roberts said. “There is nothing from an external standout that puts more pressure on me than I put on myself, and we’ve had tremendous successes. We expect to have even greater successes.

“We’ve taken a program that was one of the lowest, if not the lowest funded in the country, with the smallest staff in the country, and become competitive. Obviously we want to improve on that competitiveness. We’ve won the academic award six out of seven years in our league. Our kids are doing a great job representing the school in getting their degrees. There’s lot of successes to be found. But obviously we have to win more games.”

Keeping players out of the medical ward would go a long way to solving that problem.

“We are certainly hoping we’ve had enough surgeries to last us for a while,” Roberts said.

Tagged: The Blind Side, Gus Malzahn, Sun Belt Conference, ASU Stadium, A.J. Hill, Darrell Feemster, Alphonso Simmons, Blake Chavis, Josh Arauco, Adam Gaston, Mark Brooks, Tausean Holmes, Alex Carrington, Carlos McCants, Lucious Henderson, Dwayne Frampton, Allen Muse, Derek Lawson, Dominic Padrta, Drew Hilton, Sifa Etu, Kiano Prater, Delano Moore, Derek Newton, Reggie Arnold, Eric Allen, Tom Castilaw, Alex Kautai, Taylor Stockemer, Lake Hamilton, Phillip Butterfield, Michael Oher, Ed Orgeron, Clay Helton, Hugh Freeze, Corey Leonard, Ryan Aplin, Steve Roberts, Sun Belt, Troy Trojans, Arkansas State Red Wolves, ASU