Boning Up on 2008

Looking to kill a little time at work and read up on the football Hogs? You could do worse than plunging into this in-depth AthlonSports.com preview of Bobby Petrino's first Razorback team. Here's the money quote(s):

"At first glance, Arkansas appears too ravaged by departures on offense and too inexperienced in the back seven on defense to be a factor in the SEC West, much less the conference race. But the Razorbacks’ positions of power lie in the trenches on both sides of the ball — a solid foundation on which to build — and their presumptive starting quarterback, Casey Dick, has loads of experience. Bobby Petrino has been able to identify and accelerate skill-position stars, some previously unheralded, in all of his college stops, so he is very likely to find major contributors to run and catch in his heretofore prolific system ... Given the Razorbacks’ difficult schedule, such as a road date at Texas in addition to the brutal SEC slate, a .500 overall record would seem like a reasonable debut for Petrino."

Athlon also has produced an accompanying video preview, featuring the on-air talents of Willy Daunic and Mitch Light, the latter of whom looks eerily like a young Doug Collins. Light also has the temerity to praise the Petrino-Arkansas marriage and to not make a big deal about the manner in which the new Hog coach left Atlanta, which means that Mr. Light shouldn't be expecting holiday cards from Pat Forde or Peter King anytime soon.