Arkansas Sports 360 - ArkansasSports360.com

8/5/2010 at 10:45pm

Image by The Associated Press

Arkansas quarterback Ryan Mallett returned to practice after undergoing a pair of offseason surgeries on his left foot.

FAYETTEVILLE — As some of his Arkansas teammates casually walked onto the practice field Thursday, quarterback Ryan Mallett jogged past them onto the turf.

Was he that ready for the first practice of 2010? Was he simply trying to show off his boot-free left foot?

Perhaps it was a little of both.

"Oh man, I was ready to get out there," Mallett said. "I didn't want to wait any longer. I was excited. What's it been, eight months?"

Mallett, who underwent two offseason surgeries, returned to the practice field for the first time since preparation for the Liberty Bowl in January. Questions about Mallett's availability lingered during the summer, but he maintained throughout the rehabilitation process — even after a seemingly unexpected second surgery to replace a screw — that he would be ready.

After a summer of swimming to condition and wearing a boot as a precaution, Mallett was anxious to get back onto the field. He said he was pleased with his return for the most part.

“It feels great,” Mallett said. “It’s been a while. I was a little rusty, but it’s a process in fall camp anyway.”

Mallett, who threw for 3,624 yards with 30 touchdowns and seven interceptions last year, admitted to some soreness in his legs after practice. He was quick to clarify the issue was with his “muscles. Not my bones.”

Coach Bobby Petrino liked what he saw from Mallett. While the all-Southeastern Conference quarterback maintained he was rusty, Petrino didn’t seem bothered by what he saw from the strong-armed junior quarterback.

“I thought he did good,” Petrino said. “I thought he was on balance. His timing was pretty good. He made good throws for the most part. It was great to have his leadership back out there. It was a good start.”

For teammates, it felt like little had changed. Mallett and his targets seemed to have no timing issues and other than a ball that was tipped to safety Tramain Thomas for an interception, Mallett seemed to be in rhythm.

“It was the same old Mallett to me,” receiver Greg Childs said. “He’d been throwing some with us this summer. It didn’t take him long to get into it and it didn’t look like he’d been hurt.”

Mallett was equally complementary of his teammates. He liked the carry over he saw from the team since spring practice. Mallett didn’t participate in drills, but was present for each of the 15 workouts.

“I thought that was the best mental practice since I’ve been here that we’ve had,” Mallett said. “To do that means we’re just upgrading and upgrading. That’s a good thing to do.”

EARLY START
First-year players and some inexperienced returning players hit the field first on Thursday.

There were a handful of veteran players among the early group, including fullback Van Stumon and offensive tackle Anthony Oden. Stumon and Oden both got starts last year, but both were charged in the offseason with DWI.

EXCUSED ABSENCE
Junior defensive tackle Zach Stadther was the only player on the 105-man roster not at practice on Thursday. Petrino said Stadther was held out of practice because he was sick, but “should be back tomorrow.”

“He has a temperature over 100 so we didn’t let him in the building today,” Petrino said. Petrino added that the team was following the same precautionary procedures it used last year when there was a swine flu scare.

BACK-ING OUT
Defensive end Caleb Evans is suffering from a recurring back injury and will miss the season. Evans, a senior, appeared in three games last year.

QUOTABLE
“When the young guys come out it’s more anxiety than it is conditioning. They come out and go as hard as they can for about 10 seconds and then they’re tired. Well, maybe a little more than 10 seconds.”
—Bobby Petrino on how well conditioned younger players appeared

Tagged: Ryan Mallett, Bobby Petrino, Zach Stadther, Anthony Oden, Greg Childs, Ryan Mallett's Foot