Easley returns to Razorbacks as volunteer assistant coach

FAYETTEVILLE — Shana Easley, a four-year starter behind the plate for Arkansas from 2003-06, is set to return to Fayetteville as the program’s volunteer assistant with Tuesday’s announcement from coach Courtney Deifel.

Easley has spent the past six seasons at the helm of the Northern Colorado program.

In her final season with the Bears, Easley led her team to a 28-28 record and a spot in the 2018 Big Sky Championship title game.

During her tenure at Northern Colorado, Easley was named the 2014 Big Sky Coach of the Year, collected 110 wins and guided her players to 13 All-Big Sky honors.

Easley’s teams also excelled in the classroom with more than 60 Big Sky All-Academic Team accolades while Lauren Paige became the program’s first Academic All-American in 2018.

Prior to joining Northern Colorado, Easley spent four years as an assistant coach at UMKC. With Easley on staff, the ‘Roos played their way to the Summit League regular-season championship in 2011 with a spot in the conference tournament final that same year.

During her time with Kansas City, Easley coached 11 all-conference performers including the league Player and Pitcher of the Year in 2011.

Behind a standout career as Arkansas’ catcher, Easley still ranks among the program’s career top five in fielding percentage, chances, putouts and runners caught stealing.

In her senior year, Easley led the team in home runs and total bases. In the classroom, she was a four-time member of the SEC Academic Honor Roll.

The Loveland, Colorado, native graduated from Arkansas in 2006 with a bachelor’s degree in marketing and spent the 2007 and 2008 seasons on Arkansas’ staff as graduate assistant and director of operations.

The program earned a trip to the NCAA Tournament in 2008.

Easley played two seasons of professional softball, beginning that phase of her softball career with the Arizona Heat of the National Pro Fastpitch league in 2006.

She continued her playing days with Reggio Emilia in Italy the following season.

Bud Light Morning Rush Podcast: Tuesday

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John and Tommy discuss Frank Broyles, news around the SEC, interview Arkansas Associate AD Kevin Trainor about “Frank Broyles, Arkansas Legend” and more!

Morris gets players’ attention early in Monday’s practice

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It didn’t take Chad Morris long to finally get the Razorbacks’ attention at Monday morning’s practice.

“You push or I will!,” Morris yelled as he called the players together just a period or two into the practice. “I got all day! I don’t like your attitude!”

He then had the players do up-down drills. If you don’t know what that is, it’s exactly what it says. The players get up, run in place, then drop down flat on the ground, get up and do it until someone says you can stop.

It caught most of us in the media by surprise. That was a scene I saw a few times when Lou Holtz was coaching the Hogs, but not much — if any — in between.

The best way I can put it is Morris showed he’s an old-school coach. I remember coaches yelling they were going to run players until they puked or passed out … whichever came first.

But that was 40 years or so ago. I’m old enough to remember when the coaches told you to run through a wall, you said, “Yes sir!” and headed for the wall. Hopefully you could remember the helmet. Not anymore.

The Hogs on Monday, quite frankly, didn’t appear that surprised.

“People were walking around,” cornerback Ryan Pulley said. “We knew we were going to get punished at some time or another … we just took it to the chin and we just got better today.”

It was a change from the previous regime that appeared to me at times to be supervising recess at playschool.

“We didn’t address it like that,” tight end Austin Cantrell said.

It’s all part of the change that Morris is trying to instill. He doesn’t just talk about playing fast and playing tough.

“I think the biggest difference between the old staff and the new one is the emphasis on the culture that we’re trying to build,” Cantrell said. “It’s not that coach B (Bret Bielema) didn’t emphasize it, but, I mean, it’s every day with coach Morris. We’re pounding it. It all starts with a good foundation.”

“The physical scrimmage and coming off of the off day, the energy wasn’t there,” linebacker De’Jon Harris said. “Even in the walk-through’s and warming up.”

Morris didn’t appear too happy after Saturday’s scrimmage where the offense ran nearly 200 plays by everybody’s guestimation.

“To get tougher we’ve gotta practice tougher,” he said.

You get the idea Morris, who looks more and more like the old-school high school football coach he probably is, would love to resort to some of the tough tactics.

He would probably be the type to do what Bobby Bowden did at Florida State after they opened in the 1988 season in Miami ranked No. 1 and got kicked sideways by the sixth-ranked Hurricanes, 31-0.

Infuriated on the plane ride back to Tallahassee immediately after the night game that was carried live on CBS on the Saturday before Labor Day, Bowden decided to get his team’s attention.

“We drove straight to the stadium, coach Bowden had the players put on those wet uniforms and we scrimmaged,” said Max Howell, who was on Bowden’s staff then. He worked with the secondary that meant he basically made sure Deion Sanders and Leroy Butler were comfortable, but not after getting back to Tallahassee.

“We scrimmaged until the sun came up on Sunday morning,” Howell said. “But we didn’t lose another game.”

The Seminoles finished third in the nation, behind Miami and Notre Dame, when Holtz got his only national championship.

Morris can’t do that now. NCAA rules simply don’t allow things like that.

But you get the idea there could be a situation where he would.

“We’ve got to continue to push ’em,” he said after Saturday’s scrimmage. “We’ve got to continue to push harder in practice.”

It’s a good bet nobody is doubting now he was serious.

Agim getting most of his practice reps at tackle

Razorbacks defensive lineman McTelvin Agim told the media Monday most of his reps in practice are coming inside at tackle, but he is seeing a little more time out at end.

Harris thinks defense is coming along, playing well

Razorbacks linebacker De’Jon Harris said the defense did pretty well in the scrimmage Saturday and even the younger guys on the backend are coming along fairly well.

Calloway details interception in scrimmage Saturday

Arkansas cornerback Chevin Calloway talked with the media Monday after practice and talked about his one-handed interception of a pass during Saturday’s scrimmage.

Cantrell on Patton’s injury, lack of energy at start

Arkansas tight end Austin Cantrell told the media after Monday morning’s practice that fellow tight end Jeremy Patton’s injury wasn’t that bad in his opinion.

Capps on making adjustment from defense to o-line

Razorbacks offensive lineman Austin Capps was moved from the defense last week and talked Monday with the media about how that’s coming along and what he needs to improve.

Pulley on slow start at Monday’s practice, up-downs

Chad Morris stopped the Hogs’ practice Monday and had everyone doing up-downs and cornerback Ryan Pulley talked about how they picked up the pace during the drills after that.

Bud Light Morning Rush Podcast: Monday

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John & Tommy discuss Saturday’s scrimmage, craziest hog calls, make fun of Ole Miss’ new mascot, plus an interview with ADG’s Tom Murphy.

PHOTOS: Day 9 of Razorback practice in pictures

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Arkansas kicked off Day 9 of fall camp with the standard part of the media availability, including the “W Drill,” which is ball-carrier with offensive lineman vs. defensive lineman, tight end vs. linebacker and defensive wide receiver vs. defensive back in an alley.

Photos by Andy Hodges | HitThatLine.com