Razorbacks Try to Beat Heat Again with Early Morning Starts

FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. — The wait is almost over for Arkansas football.

Those in the media have one last weekend to squeeze in a little personal time. Children of sports journalists quickly learn the only guaranteed days to schedule anything are Christmas Day and Fourth of July, but the second the first cleat touches a football field, it’s hard to even work in a phone call.

This year, the grind starts Tuesday, which is July 30 for those digging for a calendar. When I started in this business 50-plus years ago, we had until mid-August, but now it’s really never-ending.

Everyone will hear from Razorbacks coach Sam Pittman on Tuesday. Strength and conditioning coach Ben Sowders will also offer the routine how much bigger, faster and stronger the Hogs will be.

Getting on the field will start Wednesday and a cycle of hearing from every assistant coach and Pittman will begin until the week before the first game against UAPB in Little Rock on Aug. 29. New Hogs’ offensive coordinator Bobby Petrino will make the schedule twice (probably by popular request) on Aug. 13 and 20.

Practices the first week get under way at 5:05 p.m. with interviews following that. In other words, look for the information that night and the next morning since these things usually run a little later than the scheduled start time.

Everything goes to mornings for a couple of weeks after that, but it won’t be this crack of dawn stuff like spring practice and last season. The practices will be at 9:05 a.m. for a couple of weeks and then things settle into later times when school starts on Aug. 19.

Once classes begin, the rest of the practices until the season won’t be open to make sure the media doesn’t give the Golden Lions a chance to pick up anything for that opener. Throw Oklahoma State in there too since they will be the second week.

The media will have access to 14 practices during camp. The two scrimmages and practices leading up to the Arkansas-Pine Bluff game will either be closed or have no media availability. The season opens at War Memorial Stadium in Little Rock on Aug. 29 against UAPB at 6:30 p.m. on ESPNU.

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