FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. - Arkansas defensive coordinator Ron Roberts was asked Wednesday after the Razorbacks' first practice of fall camp what he wanted opposing teams to think after playing against his defense.
He didn't ponder the question very long.
"That was tough as hell," Roberts answered. "I want it to be hard for people to find a way to get a first down. Hopefully they're going to say that we're very fundamentally sound and we play extremely hard."
Wednesday's practice was the first of fall practice for the Razorbacks, who desperately need a tenured defensive mind in Roberts to turn the tide of a defense that ranked last in points and yards allowed last season.
The former Auburn and Florida defensive coordinator, like head coach Ryan Silverfield, isn't worried about anything that happened prior to this year.
"We got to focus on us right now," Roberts said. "How good can we get, and what can we control? We control how well we practice. We control how hard we work, and we can control our assignment, our responsibility and do those things.
"That was last year. I don't care. And chances are, we're going to line up, there's going to be probably 10 of 11 new starters on that field. I'm pretty excited about it."
Roberts called the Razorbacks one of the better units he's had in 35 years of coaching.
"I stressed them pretty good this summer, mentally," Roberts said. "We're going into Year 1, so we've got to get some kinks ironed out now. And so we threw a bunch at them, tried to stress them mentally as much as we could in the summer. I thought they did a really good job with it."
A big piece of Roberts' new defensive puzzle, both literally and figuratively, is senior defensive lineman Hunter Osborne. The 6-4, 313-pound senior who transferred to UA from Virginia has emerged as one of the leaders of Arkansas' defense through the spring and summer.
Alongside North Little Rock native Quincy Rhodes Jr. , Osborne is expected to be an anchor on the defense line for the Hogs.
"He's been really consistent," Roberts said of Osborne.
Osborne, in turn, had plenty of good things to say about his defensive coordinator.
"I feel like Coach Roberts is one of the most intellectual people that I've ever talked to when it comes to football," Osborne said. "The way he can break down the defense and break down why we do certain things and how it counters an offensive scheme, it's incredible. It's tremendous. I've never seen anything like it."
Arkansas will be back on the practice field Thursday at 3:15, with offensive coordinator Tim Cramsey and players scheduled to meet with the media Thursday evening.
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This article was originally published on www.si.com/college/arkansas as Ron Roberts Wants Razorback Defense To Be 'Tough As Hell' .
