Tuesday Practice Report

London Crawford has a strained neck. Robert Johnson isn’t expected to practice this week after a nagging ankle injury. And Marcus Monk is making progress, but has still only played one snap this season. Arkansas’ receiving corps is in a constant state of flux.

“When they come back everything should pick up where we left off,” Razorbacks quarterback Casey Dick said. “We should be ready to go.”

Crawford, who missed practice Tuesday, was the latest wideout to go down after he was hit in the Razorbacks’ 44-8 rout of Ole Miss last Saturday. Earlier this year, senior Monk damaged cartilage in his right knee, freshman Crosby Tuck broke his arm against Kentucky and Johnson missed the Tennessee-Chattanooga game because of a sprained ankle he suffered in late September.

The injuries have wreaked havoc on Arkansas’ passing game and forced Dick to depend on his running backs as his best receiving options. Fullback Peyton Hillis leads the team with 26 catches for 297 yards, and the passing game is still ranked 11th in the Southeastern Conference in terms of production.

But Razorbacks offensive coordinator David Lee remains optimistic the team will be able to move the ball through the air, despite what has happened to the team’s best wideouts. This Saturday,  at Reynolds Razorback Stadium, Arkansas plays Florida International at 1 p.m.

“Lucas Miller is coming on, Reggie Fish is starting to get consistent,” Lee said. “And the important thing today is that Monk was out there.”

Monk, who caught 50 passes for 962 yards and 11 touchdowns in 2006, went through his most rigorous practice Tuesday since he hurt his right knee Aug. 9.

“He felt good being out there today,” Arkansas coach Houston Nutt said. “It’s good to see No. 85 out there. I think he’s far more ready than he has been.”

Filed under: Arkansas Football by Rainer Sabin. Posted on: October 23, 2007 at 8:59 pm