Arkansas offensive line shifts focus

HOOVER — The Arkansas Razorbacks have gone from under the microscope to under the radar.

All-SEC center Jonathan Luigs, who won the Rimington Award as the best center in the country last year, disagrees with the media’s preseason forecast that listed Arkansas last in the SEC Western Division.

“It kind of puts a chip on your shoulder. I’m not going to lie,” said the 6-foot-4, 314-pound senior from Little Rock. “I don’t like to be picked last in anything, whether it’s a kickball game or in the order in the conference.”

Still, with the departure of first-round NFL draft picks Darren McFadden and Felix Jones — plus all four starters in the secondary — Luigs understands that first-year coach Bobby Petrino has a rebuilding job to do.

“We lost a bunch of great players — our entire secondary, two guys that made up most of our offense. It’s kind of expected that people on the outside would pick that way,” Luigs said.

“But really, we know what we have in the program. We have a strong offensive line, a bunch of seniors, a bunch of leaders, a senior quarterback in Casey Dick who’s seen the ropes and knows what it’s like to play in this conference. Really, we know we’re going to be better than what people think we’re going to be.”

Luigs was certain the Razorbacks had saved coach Houston Nutt’s job after a 50-48 triple-overtime victory at LSU in the regular-season finale. But the 7-5 season wasn’t enough.

Suddenly, Luigs and the Razorbacks didn’t just have a another coach, Bobby Petrino, they had a completely new offense.

“It’s been a learning experience,” Petrino said of his offensive line adjusting to his pro-style attack. “They’re a group that is very used to coming off the ball and run-blocking.”

“The transition was kind of shaky at first, but I think everybody handled it well,” Luigs said.

Petrino credited Luigs with part of that.

“Jonathan Luigs is a guy that adds a tremendous amount of leadership to that group,” Petrino said of the offensive line. “And he’s a young man that is very energized by learning the new techniques, the new fundamentals, the new schemes that he knows will carry on to his days playing at the next level.”

SEC coaches will be happy when that day comes. Luigs played all 78 snaps of the Hogs’ road loss at Alabama. He graded out 84 percent on running plays and 100 percent on passing plays in that game as Arkansas rushed for 301 yards.

In the home loss to Auburn, he graded out at 90 percent, including 100 percent on pass plays. He played all 54 offensive snaps.

His Rimington Award is the first individual honor to go to a center at Arkansas.

“That had to do with the two guys behind me,” he said, referring to McFadden and Jones. “You definitely didn’t have to hold your blocks as long with those two guys. Really, you just had to get in the way, to be honest with you.”

With Petrino’s new offense, Luigs said the assignments are different, “but you have to have the same mentality, the same want-to, the same drive,” he said.

“It’s not so much technique as it is protections and assignments and what everybody’s responsible for,” Luigs said. “That’s part of the offense, just trying to trick the defense and be able to cover different blitzes. You just gotta dive into that playbook and learn what you’re doing and just go out and fight. That’s what I’ve tried to do.”

The ball will be in the air more for Arkansas this season, but Luigs said the ability to run the ball is still key in the SEC.

“We’re not gonna go out and spread the ball around like Hawaii does, by any means, but we’re definitely going to be a balanced attack,” he said.
“The run sets up the pass, especially with how important play-action is in this league. It’s really starting to turn into the NFL. You need to be able to do both, but they both complement each other.

“It keeps the defense on their toes. You have to do that with the defenses and the athletes in this league.”