The University of Alabama football team continues preparation for its first Southeastern Conference opponent of the year, the No. 14 Arkansas Razorbacks.

Senior linebacker Jerrell Harris said his team’s preparation has been a lot more intense for its first conference game than for previous games this season.

“The preparation, it’s a lot harder,” Harris said. “There’s a lot more focusing on the player’s part. A lot more just getting prepared for the game. It’s the first SEC game, so it’s a big challenge for us.”

Despite the change in intensity, senior wide receiver Darius Hanks said the team wouldn’t change its weekly game plan for the Razorbacks.

“We’re going to go out and handle this like any other game,” Hanks said. “We’re not going to do anything different. Go out and execute on Saturday.”

Offensive threat vs. defensive juggernaut

The Arkansas Razorbacks have been potent on offense this year en route to a 3-0 start to the season. This year, they’re ranked in the top 10 in both passing yardage (346.7 per game) and points per game (47). Harris said he was excited at the prospect of playing such an explosive offense.

“Obviously, we’re really psyched up about it,” Harris said. “This is a huge challenge for us – first SEC game – we really want to come out and show everybody what we’re made of. So this is the perfect challenge for us to come out.”

Despite the attention given to the Arkansas passing game, Harris said the defense can’t afford to focus on one particular player or facet of the offense.

In fact, of all the positions on offense Harris talked about, including running backs, wide receivers and quarterbacks, Harris spoke mostly about the Razorbacks’ offensive line.

“They’re a good unit,” Harris said. “Everybody in the SEC has a good line. You can’t really overlook anybody, try to point out any certain players or anything. You’re just have to really prepare, ‘cause you never know how they’re gonna show up.”

As the Tide continues prepping for this week’s game, Harris said the main part of practice is still trying to improve everyday.

“We have things we can improve on every week,” Harris said. “That’s really our focus, is just going out and practicing, improving at every aspect. Each player doing better than what they did last week.”

Hanks said that he has confidence in his defense, especially considering he had to practice against first team defense when he was still on the scout team.

“Me being on scout team, going against our defense,” Hanks said, “I feel like we got the best defense in the nation.”

Practice Notes

Duron Carter continued working with the scout team today. Carter started working with the practice squad earlier this week.

Blake Sims drilled with the running backs at practice. Sims is listed as the third-string quarterback.