Monk won’t play against Mocs; timetable for return uncertain

With a bunch of receivers standing behind him Tuesday after practice, Arkansas senior wideout Marcus Monk lined up and began running the first few steps of a route.

Monk looked fine, moving around nimbly in just shorts and a jersey. But he hasn’t been cleared to play yet by the team’s medical staff and will not take the field this Saturday when the Razorbacks face Tennessee-Chattanooga at War Memorial Stadium in Little Rock.

It’s been almost two months since Monk suffered cartilage damage in his right knee during a preseason workout Aug. 9. He has since had two arthroscopic surgeries and missed Arkansas’ first four games.

“As far as my rehab, I am getting stronger and working on conditioning right now,” Monk said. “At times, it can get frustrating. But I don’t really let it get to me. Everything happens for a reason. I never question why it happened.”

In the last few weeks, Monk said he has felt “no pain” or noticed any swelling in the knee. However, no definitive timetable has been set for his return. Monk didn’t rule out the possibility of redshirting but said, “I haven’t thought about that at all.”

In the meantime he will continue his rehabilitation, which has been a slow process.

“He’s doing a lot of ball drills, a lot of jogging drills,” Arkansas coach Houston Nutt said. “But he still doesn’t have the strength or stability to really come out of breaks and turn and cut.”

Since the beginning of the year, Nutt has repeatedly asserted that Monk’s absence has adversely affected the offense. In 2006, the 6-foot-6, 220-pound split end made a team-high 50 receptions for 962 yards and 11 touchdowns.

No other wideout on the team came close to matching that level of production. And Arkansas has yet to find someone to fill the void left by Monk. Since the season started last month, fullback Peyton Hillis has emerged as the team’s top target. He has 12 receptions for 122 yards. That’s one of the reasons why Arkansas quarterback Casey Dick is eagerly anticipating Monk’s return.

“It definitely gets you excited when he gets back out here,” Dick said. “He’s trying to get that strength back in his knee and get his legs back underneath him. He’s doing a little bit more. We’re just going to have to see what happens.”

Monk refused to speculate on his current condition, but said he will know when he is ready to play based on how he performs in practice in the coming weeks.

“I’m progressing,” he said. “That’s why I’m out here. I’m taking it a week at a time. ”

NORTON, FISH TO START AT PUNT RETURNER

Cornerback Jerell Norton and receiver Reggie Fish will return punts this Saturday against Tennessee-Chattanooga, Arkansas coach Houston Nutt said.

“We’re going to give it to those two guys,” Nutt said.

Peyton Hillis had started the previous three games at punt returner, but Nutt said the senior fullback will play a bigger role in the offense this week.

BARNETT REMAINS THIRD-STRING TAILBACK

Sophomore Brandon Barnett will continue to be Arkansas’ third-string running back. Last week, the 5-foot-10, 190-pound native of Texarkana, gained 105 yards and scored a touchdown on 16 carries in Arkansas 66-7 rout of North Texas last Saturday.

Barnett moved up on the depth chart following Michael Smith’s Sept. 23 arrest on charges of forgery and theft by receiving. Smith was suspended last week but has since returned to practice.

Filed under: Arkansas Football, SEC Football by Rainer Sabin. Posted on: October 2, 2007 at 7:40 pm