Using more than a dash of Sprinkle

Jeremy Sprinkle (left) of Arkansas heads to the end zone after catching a pass while Logan Burns of UT-Martin defends Saturday, Oct. 31, 2015, during the fourth quarter at Razorback Stadium in Fayetteville.

FAYETTEVILLE — Jeremy Sprinkle isn’t only the most versatile player on Arkansas’ offense, he may be the most involved player on the entire team.

Sprinkle, a junior from White Hall, will take a two-game touchdown scoring streak into today’s 2:30 p.m. game at Ole Miss.

Sprinkle, 6-6, 255 pounds, is listed as a tight end, but he also plays fullback, H-back and even wideout, and is one of the most consistent Razorbacks who goes in motion prior to the snap.

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And those are just his offensive responsibilities.

“It’s fun,” Sprinkle said. “The more I’m on the field, it’s just more exposure I get and the more I can help the team. I like it.”

Coach Bret Bielema rattled off Sprinkle’s offensive job titles Monday, then dropped in his work on special teams as the center on kickoff returns, the right tackle on punts and the “L3” position on kickoffs.

“He’s just very, very versatile,” Bielema said.

Sprinkle had a 35-yard touchdown catch last week, the first touchdown pass of backup quarterback Austin Allen’s college career. He had a 23-yard touchdown catch from Brandon Allen and caught a critical two-point conversion pass in Arkansas’ 54-46, four-overtime victory over Auburn.

“Jeremy is a big threat for us,” Brandon Allen said. “His size and speed that he has and he’s deceptively fast. Any time you’ve got a guy who can play those multiple positions, it creates challenges for the defense to know where he is at all times and be aware that he can play any kind of position.”

Sprinkle said the addition of fullback duties, including lead blocking responsibility, might have been the most challenging.

“I kind of had to embrace that during fall camp, but I like it,” Sprinkle said. “I was just taking coaching points from Coach [Jemal] Singleton and things like that. I had to make sure I stayed low, because you know I’m 6-6 and it’s hard to get under some guys. Just making sure I have leverage and things like that.”

Tight ends coach Barry Lunney Jr. said Sprinkle’s dedication and intelligence have allowed him to excel.

“I can’t say enough about him, his football awareness and IQ and his ability to learn and observe and absorb in the meeting room,” Lunney said. “He gets it. You have to have a high football IQ to do all the things we ask him to do and for him to do it well.”

Pairing Sprinkle with lead tight end Hunter Henry in many of their formations has paid dividends.

“It’s been my experience that when you have one tight end, it’s a great thing, but when you have two that are really, really good, some great things can happen for both of them,” Bielema said. “That’s exactly what’s happening.”

Ole Miss Coach Hugh Freeze said Wednesday he wished Henry and Sprinkle weren’t making the trip to Oxford. Miss.

“They are very talented and present you with a lot of problems in the way they package their 12 [two tight end] personnel and the number of pictures you get with those guys,” Freeze said. “They’re athletic enough to be flexed out and moved around and play on the ball.

“It is difficult to prepare for those guys.”

Jeremy Sprinkle glance

POSITIONS Tight end/H-back/receiver

HEIGHT/WEIGHT 6-6, 255

CLASS Redshirt junior

LAST STOP White Hall High School

NOTEWORTHY Ranks third on the team with 13 catches for 222 yards and 2 touchdowns. His average of 17.1 yards per catch is third, behind Dominique Reed (21.5) and Damon Mitchell (18.0). … Has caught touchdown passes in each of the past two games, a 23-yard score against Auburn and a 35-yarder against Tennessee-Martin, plus a key two-point conversion catch against Auburn. … Redshirted in 2012 and had a combined 11 catches for 152 yards and 1 touchdown in his first two seasons.