ARKANSAS NEWS BUREAU SPORTS COLUMNIST HARRY KING — PRESEASON ALL-SEC ONLY A STARTING POINT — THURSDAY, JULY 24, 2008

LITTLE ROCK — Optimistic Arkansas football fans only need to go back one year to find a reason to dismiss the Razorbacks’ skimpy representation on the Preseason All-Southeastern Conference team.

Only three Razorbacks are among the 73 players on the first three offensive and defensive units selected by the coaches, and that won’t change much when the media’s preseason team is revealed on Friday. The sparse number should be no surprise. Keep in mind that the preseason roll-call is history-based and does not necessarily project results. Also, remember that all of Arkansas’ proven playmakers are gone.

It is the Georgia team of 2007 that is a source of hope.

Before all the hitting began for real, the coaches zeroed in on five Georgia players worthy of All-SEC honors, and that’s inflated because the group included kicker Brandon Coutu and return specialist Mikey Henderson. Three and one-half months later, the Bulldogs were 10-2 and some believed they belonged in the national championship game. Instead, they routed Hawaii in the Sugar Bowl.

When the All-SEC team was announced, the Bulldogs had three representatives on the first two teams and one of those was freshman running back Knowshon Moreno who was not considered for the preseason team. All-conference teams are not the end-all. Arkansas won three fewer games than the Bulldogs, but had four more players on the all-league team.

Do not interpret this as a projection that the 2008 Razorbacks will be in a big bowl game, only that it is possible for a team to achieve beyond the perceived headliners. Bobby Petrino’s first year is going to be a struggle; .500 will be an accomplishment.

For one reason or another, only six players on the 2007 preseason first team offense showed up on the post-season list, including Darren McFadden and Jonathan Luigs of Arkansas. The coaches fudged a bit on defense where there were seven repeaters. The preseason team included three down linemen, four linebackers and four defensive backs while the team released in December included five linemen, four linebackers and six defensive backs. Now, that would be the ideal defense — rush seven and defend with eight.

The preseason team differs from the one that matters for a variety of reasons.

Some players don’t perform up to expectations. Others are done in by injuries and other circumstances. For instance:

—Alabama’s John Parker Wilson might be the quarterback of the Western Division champion, but he is No. 3 in July behind Heisman Trophy winner Tim Tebow of Florida and Matthew Stafford of Georgia, the preseason No. 1 of many.

—Supporting casts change. For instance, Wilson will not have the security blanket of receiver DJ Hall, who caught 67 last year. And Matt Flynn won’t be around to throw to LSU’s Demetrius Byrd, who grabbed a total of 10 passes against Arkansas and Tennessee.

—Schemes change. McFadden and Felix Jones were guaranteed more than their fair share of carries under Houston Nutt at Arkansas, but Petrino’s offense is more balanced. Receivers will have an opportunity to catch enough balls to get noticed.

—Freshmen are not considered in the preseason and they can have an impact. Moreno ran for 1,334 yards last year and is now being mentioned in the same sentence as Herschel Walker. The year before, Percy Harvin caught 41 as a freshman at Florida. At Arkansas, freshmen will have a chance to impress.