The Arkansas Razorbacks haven’t won a national championship since 1964 (although Tide fans would argue that), and haven’t won a conference title since 1989 when they were still in the Southwest Conference.

So why not Arkansas in 2011? Recruiting classes not ranked high enough? Not enough speed or size? Too many holes to fill? I say the Hogs are primed for a run at not only the SEC Championship, but keeping the SEC national title streak alive as well. Let’s take a look why this might be possible.

Arkansas has six starters back on offense, to include their top four receivers, a 1,000 yard back, and two linemen. I know that’s seven, but Cobi Hamilton became a starter after Greg Childs went down with an injury against Vandy. Ryan Mallett is gone, but Tyler Wilson inherits a team loaded with skill position talent. Plus, Wilson is mobile and can use his feet to get out of trouble – an aspect of the Arkansas offense that defenses did not have to prepare for with Mallett behind center.

D. J. Williams will be a big loss for the Hogs, especially since he was so good at getting that medium third down yardage. With that said, Arkansas has some very good TE’s in the fold. It may be compensation by committee at tight end in 2011, but look out for junior Chris Gragg, as he is similar to Williams in size and speed.

The offensive line is where most people are pointing when asking about weaknesses. Three players gone from a group that started all 13 games last season. Center Travis Swanson and guard Alvin Bailey are back, and the other guard spot looks like it is senior Grant Cook’s to lose. The tackles are the real worrisome positions. Petrino dismissed Anthony Oden earlier this summer because he couldn’t stay out of trouble. Senior Grant Freeman is the only tackle with game experience. Brey Cook looks to be a possible starter as a true freshman. He has the size (6’7” 317 lbs) and ability that coaches dream about. Juco transfers Jason Peacock and Chris Stringer, and freshmen Austin Beck and Grady Ollison will vie for the other starting tackle position. If the line can come together by the time Arkansas travels to Tuscaloosa, they could give the Tide a real fight.

Defense is where most people are overlooking the Hogs. They didn’t have a dominant defense last year, but it was good enough to jump from 89^th in total defense, to 36th. Anytime a defense can jump 53 spots, most experts would call it a big improvement.

Now consider that same defense returns eight starters and is a year older. Tenarius “Tank” Wright steps into the lone vacated position on the line, where Arkansas has depth, size, and speed. With leading tackler Jerry Franklin back at MLB, and undersized but speedy and hard-hitting Jerico Nelson returning at one of the OLB positions, the Hogs will be looking to tab a new starter opposite Nelson. Likely candidates are junior Terrell Williams, Juco transfers Alonzo Highsmith Jr and Robert Atiga, and redshirt freshman Braylon Mitchell. Defensive Coordinator Willy Robinson has done a great job recruiting, as Arkansas finally has some depth at linebacker. The secondary returns three players, and a fourth with starting experience, all are seniors or juniors. With speed to burn back there, coupled with what should be a strong pass-rush from the line, offenses may struggle in the passing game.

The last piece is special teams. Arkansas, under the tutelage of John L. Smith, has gotten better each of the last two years. The kickoff returns did falter in 2010 after Dennis Johnson was lost in the second game, but he is back, 100% healthy, and ready to pick up where he left off. Joe Adams was the second-best punt returner in the SEC last year, which isn’t too bad considering Patrick Peterson was first. Adams showed his speed and athleticism with a 96 yard punt return for a TD against Ole Miss in 2010, and he is back for one more go. Dylan Breeding averaged over 42 yards per punt, and Zach Hocker established himself as a go-to kicker last year.

What does all of this mean? Right now it doesn’t mean a whole lot. No one will know anything until these guys get onto a field and play an actual game. Looking at the Razorbacks schedule, the two glaring contests are at Alabama and at LSU. Winning on the road in the SEC isn’t easy, but I am of the opinion that Arkansas has the team to compete in every single game this year, and if all goes right, it could be a very special season. My expectations are high, and I believe the team can deliver in 2011.

The team voted on the who the captains would be, and they are as follows:

• Knile Davis, RB, Jr.
• Tyler Wilson, QB, Jr.
• Jarius Wright, WR, Sr.
• Jake Bequette, DE, Sr.
• Jerry Franklin, LB, Sr.
• Jerico Nelson LB/S, Sr.

These six players make up the heart and soul of this high-powered SEC West team.

Also, this shows Wilson’s teammates have a ton of confidence in him to vote him a captain for 2011 when he only played meaningful minutes in one game last year.

Saturday Down South will be counting down the SEC West predictions from No. 6 to No. 1. Obviously preseason predictions are based on pure speculation, and no one knows how crazy the SEC football season will turn out to be!

No. 3: Arkansas Razorbacks

2010 Record: 10-2 overall, 6-2 in conference

2011 Prediction: 10-2 overall, 6-2 in conference

The Arkansas Razorbacks enter unknown waters in Fayetteville for 2011. They are coming off their first ever BCS bowl appearance in the Sugar Bowl, and even though the Hogs did not pull out the victory, it was a successful season. It brought winning back to Arkansas, something that had been missing for a couple of years since Darren McFadden and company roamed the sidelines.

Arkansas is loaded with offensive talent, and their biggest question on offense is along the offensive line. With playmakers at wide receiver such as Joe Adams, Greg Childs, Cobi Hamilton and Jarius Wright, it can be said that Arkansas is Wide Receiver U for 2011. In addition to the receivers, running backs Knile Davis, Dennis Johnson and Ronnie Wingo Jr. form a nasty punch at the position.

The Razorbacks will be breaking in a new quarterback in Tyler Wilson, but I fully expect this offense to be firing on all cylinders. Wilson showed promise last year against the Auburn Tigers, and even though it is one game, he showed me all I needed to see. He could be the quarterback with the best numbers exiting 2011. We’ll just have to wait and see.

Oh, and the defense isn’t too shabby either. The Hogs return eight of 11 starters on defense, including defensive ends Jake Bequette and Tenarius Wright, along with Jerry Franklin and Jerico Nelson at linebacker. With experience and talent returning on defense, I think there will be much improvement in this unit from even a year ago.

I have Arkansas finishing third in the West in 2011 because they could lose two games in conference, namely the head-to-head battle against LSU. The two losses could be South Carolina and aforementioned LSU Tigers, but Alabama could very well be one of the two. If Arkansas loses the head-to-head match up with LSU, the Hogs will likely finish third in the West.

I could see Arkansas going on the road to Tuscaloosa and pulling an upset. Call me crazy, I know!

With that being said, it doesn’t matter what I think. Arkansas very well could win the West this year because they do have the offensive unit to score points and experience returning on defense to get the football back to the offense.

It will be an interesting 2011 in the West!

Head Coach: Bobby Petrino is entering his fourth year at Arkansas, and he boasts a 23-15 record since he donned the campus in Fayette-Nam. While I may not think Bobby Petrino is an elite head coach, he is a brilliant offensive mind who finds ways to put points on the scoreboard. The Razorbacks have wasted no time in locking down Petrino for the long haul. He will average $3.56 million per year through 2017, and he even requested for a buyout clause to put rumors to bed each and every year they come up.

While in Fayetteville, Petrino’s offenses keep getting better. In 2008, his offense averaged 21.9 points per game. In 2009, it averaged 39 points per game, and last year in 2010 the offense averaged 36.4 points per game. While there is a decline from ’09 to ’10, the offense has been playing at a high level over those two seasons, averaging over 35 points per game.

Quarterback: The quarterback position for the Arkansas Razorbacks was a battle the entire spring between 2010 backup Tyler Wilson and Brandon Mitchell. Although there have been no public announcements from Petrino regarding Wilson winning the job this spring, most people within the program fully expect Wilson to get the nod on opening day. He was superb in the spring game, thus fully solidifying him as the top quarterback on the depth chart. The offensive firepower surrounding the quarterback position is truly amazing, and it will give Wilson (or Mitchell) a little bit of flexibility and relaxation knowing the skill that can bail the offense out of trouble at any time. Petrino’s offense is always commanded by a willing and very able quarterback. Tyler Wilson certainly looked the part during limited action backing up Ryan Mallett, and he looked very able the entire spring. Wilson will be working on timing all summer with his receivers – thus, I fully expect the timing and instincts to get better and better.

Running Back: There is really good news and bad news on the running back front. The good news is Knile Davis escaped the spring with no major injuries, and he will be healthy entering the season. Also, the Razorbacks will get an addition in the backfield in former returning starter Dennis Johnson. Johnson went down last year early in the season after a major bowel injury that required surgery. Ronnie Wingo, Jr. also escaped spring with no major injuries. The bad news is backup and USC transfer Broderick Green will miss the entire 2011 season on account of a knee injury this spring. Green added a punch to the already quick backfield. He will be missed; however, with the return of Johnson, it will make the Green injury blow easier to swallow. Starter Knile Davis had a monster last half of 2010, and I fully expect him to carry that into 2011. He has straight ahead speed to burn and does very little dancing in the hole. As most of you know, I love Knile Davis, and he is a premier back in this league.

Wide Receiver: The wide receiving corps for the Razorbacks might be the most talented and deep as any position in the league – and even the rest of the country. Returning starters Joe Adams, Greg Childs, Cobi Hamilton and Jarius Wright make up what most fans will call Wide Receiver U in 2011. Adams is the blazer who is similar to who Percy Harvin was for Florida as Mr. Do-It-All for the offense. Adams epitomizes the word playmaker. Greg Childs is a big-possession receiver who got hurt in 2010. Childs will be healthy for the start of 2011. Both Hamilton and Wright stepped up big-time when Childs went down with his injury, and both are very viable options who could start at any SEC school right now. It will be a dog fight for playing time in this offense, but with four legitimate SEC receivers, I fully expect Bobby Petrino to utilize them to the maximum. The receivers will work on timing with quarterback Tyler Wilson this summer to ensure better timing on passing plays. Whether it is short hitches, straight flies or a fade to the back of the end zone, the Hogs have every possible route covered as needed.

Tight End: The Razorbacks will have a tough time replacing graduating tight end DJ Williams, who caught 54 passes for 659 yards. This position could get interesting because a Petrino-coached offense always utilizes the tight ends. However, with the amount of talent that will be on the receiving cast, the tight end position will be masked, but they will need a tight end to make some third down conversions.

Offensive Line: If there is a weak point on offense right now for the Razorbacks entering summer workouts and approaching the fall practices, it could be along the offensive front. The Hogs will miss offensive tackle and leader DeMarcus Love, but I’m sure they will find someone to fill the need. Underclassmen Alvin Bailey and Travis Swanson both return as starters. True freshman and early enrollee Brey Cook will be a staple in this offensive line for years to come, and he will most likely start as a true freshman in the SEC at tackle. The offensive line just needs to be adequate enough to hold their blocks long enough for the quarterback to get the football out and just long enough for Knile Davis to explode through the hole. I think the offensive line will step up on offense. This unit has a chance to get stronger physically and gel as a team over the summer in time for the fall start.

Defensive Unit: Offensively, the Razorbacks are as good as anyone in the country; however, defensively, the will have to take their game to the next level. The defense broke down against top-shelf offenses. The good news is eight starters return to help take the defense to a whole new level. From years 2009 to 2010, the Hogs went from 89th nationally to 36th as a unit.

Defensive Front: Senior defensive end and team leader Jake Bequette returns to lead this defensive unit. Bequette has been a staple in the defense for a couple seasons now, and he will be ready to rock during his senior season. Along with Bequette, fellow end Tenarius Wright will hold down the end positions. The Hogs really do have some training table MVPs sitting on the depth chart at defensive tackle. Alfred Davis (6-1, 326), Bryan Jones (6-2, 312), DeQuinta Jones (6-5, 307) and JUCO transfer Robert Thomas (6-3, 325) will all play at defensive tackle – as tackle is the weaker than end right now. They are all athletic, but there was not much production or push from this tackle unit last season. Tackle will have to improve as a unit over the summer and heading into the fall. Sure, there is certainly room for skepticism but overall Hog fans have to be happy because this is a position where there is enough depth to help carry the load.

Linebackers: Even though the linebacking corps loses Anthony Leon, it returns rising seniors Jerry Franklin (middle linebacker) and Jerico Nelson (outside linebacker). Also, Terrell Williams will start as the other outside linebacker. The main thing the Razorbacks need to find with the linebackers is depth. However, with two upper classmen and returning starters, it will help solidify the front seven. The front seven as a whole looks like a unit that is ready to attack.

Defensive Secondary: Returning starters Isaac Madison (corner) and Tramain Thomas (safety) look to lead this defensive backfield unit. Thomas proved to be a ball-hawking asset at his safety position in 2010 – really an overall better position than the corners. Likely, senior Greg Gatson will start opposite Madison at corner, and senior Elton Ford will likely start opposite Thomas at safety. The Razorbacks have to improve at corner, a position that was rather weak in 2010.

Special Teams: I fully expect the Arkansas special teams unit to be chomping at the bit. Punt returner and wide receiver Joe Adams has the ability to return a punt to the end zone at any time. Also, with the return of running back Dennis Johnson, it will lift this unit as well. In 2009, Johnson returned 40 kickoffs for a school record 1,936 yards. This unit will certainly be a force to be reckoned with.