KNOCK ON WOOD : Dick’s back injury keeps Razorbacks guessing
Posted on Sunday, August 13, 2006
While spirits
remain high
around the Razorback football camp and the preseason has generally gone well, the quarterback situation has become quite delicate. As delicate as Casey Dick’s sore back.
Arkansas head coach Houston Nutt said before the Hogs ever stepped onto the practice field that he, his offensive coordinator Gus Malzahn and quarterbacks coach Alex Wood wanted to have a starter named for the Sept. 2 season opener by Aug. 19.
The idea was to have two full weeks of practice to polish up the offense with the starting QB leading the way.
Early in practices that date was moved up to around Aug. 16, but with Dick missing most of the practice time since Tuesday, Nutt has extended that date back to the 19 th and it could be pushed even closer to the season opener.
It seems fairly clear that Dick, who started the final four games of 2005 with a 2-2 record, was their odds-on choice, and he did appear to be the quarterback in the most control until he was sidelined with the back problem last Tuesday.
Since then Robert Johnson, who started the first seven games last season, and Mitch Mustain, the All-American freshman from Springdale, have virtually split time with the starting offense and both have improved.
In all likelihood, Dick will be the quarterback who is behind when he is able to return to practice.
But exactly when Dick will return is the big question. Nutt is hopeful he will be back to work on Monday, but that might not be the case.
With the MRI taken Friday showing no fracture, Dick’s pain threshold will probably be the determining factor on when he can return to practice.
If Dick is able to return to full-speed work on Monday and experiences no further back problems, it is not only conceivable but also probable that his experience and talent will push him to the fore.
However back injuries are tricky things.
One moment there can be no pain, but a wrong twitch later, and the victim can be immobile because of the pain.
No one wants to acknowledge it, but It’s entirely possible that Dick’s back injury will hang over the team the entire season.
The question Arkansas’ coaches have to consider is if they want to gameplan with Dick as the starter, knowing that his back could tighten up at any time.
Is he that much better than Johnson or Mustain ?
Both have had their moments in practice — good and bad — but for a layman to hazard a guess as to which one is more capable of starting against USC would be silly.
Only the coaches know what their expectations truly are.
Malzahn has said the best player will start, and it is going to be interesting to see just who that player is, particularly if Dick’s back continues to give him trouble.
Terry J. Wood is the sports editor of the Northwest Arkansas Times.
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