The return of Johnson and Slusher adds value to Razorbacks

Running back Dominque Johnson and cornerback Myles Slusher returned to the field last Saturday and became immediate assets to their respective units.

The No. 20 Arkansas Razorbacks drew the short end of the stick last Saturday, falling to No. 17 Texas A&M, 23-21 in Arlington, Texas.

There were a few positives to take away from the game, including the performances of running back [autotag]Dominique Johnson[/autotag] and cornerback [autotag]Myles Slusher[/autotag], who returned to the field after battling injuries.

Johnson’s return helps the Razorbacks in the running game. [autotag]Raheim Sanders[/autotag] continues to lead the SEC in rushing with 508 yards, while [autotag]A.J. Green[/autotag], [autotag]Rashod Dubinion[/autotag], and quarterback [autotag]K.J. Jefferson[/autotag] carry their weight in the department, too.

Head coach Sam Pittman says that he was pleased with Johnson’s return.

“I thought he played well. I haven’t seen really what all he did. Five carries for 32 yards,” Pittman said during his postgame press conference on Saturday night. “I thought he played well. Looked like he was going north-south pretty good.”

Slusher’s return to the defensive backfield will only improve the unit as a whole, there were signs of that in the Texas A&M game. For the first time all season, Arkansas allowed just 151 passing yards, which is 200 yards below average. Slusher ended the game with six tackles, which was second-most behind Bumper Pool’s seven stops.

“(Slusher is) a good player. I think he was all over the place. Made a lot of tackles. He’s a good player now. A really good player,” Pittman said. “We need him to stay healthy. I thought our defense played a lot better game.”

Arkansas will now shift their focus to No. 2 Alabama, who comes to town this Saturday for a 2:30 p.m. CT kickoff at Reynolds Razorback Stadium.

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