FAYETTEVILLE — To a casual bystander wandering by an Arkansas practice, it may look like Ryan Mallett is working out with the Razorbacks in fall camp.
There are a lot of similarities between the former Razorback All-SEC quarterback and true freshman Cole Kelley.
Both are giants by quarterback standards. Mallett was listed at 6-foot-6, 238 pounds while he was at Arkansas. Kelley is even a bigger, listed at 6-7, 258.
Both have uncommon arm strength. Mallett possessed arguably the best arm in school history. Kelley easily has the best arm on the current roster, evidenced by a number of deep throws he made with ease in Arkansas’ first fall scrimmage Saturday.
And of course, both wear No. 15.
Barring disaster in front of him, Kelley won’t play as a true freshman this year. Next season, Austin Allen will be a senior returning starter and is clearly the best, most advanced quarterback on the team. He’ll be a two-year starter.
But long-term, Kelley may project as the most-talented quarterback on campus thanks to his immense physical gifts. His teammates already call him “The Franchise” and Dan Enos, his position coach, touted him as the best high school passer in the nation last year.
“It’s crazy to think that Cole’s still just a true freshman getting his feet wet out here,” Allen said. “Some of the throws he makes are really, really impressive. Just being so young and understanding the offense, he’s still picking it up and he’ll get a lot better.”
He had impressive moments while working with the second-team offense in Saturday’s scrimmage. He completed 5 of 12 passes for 116 yards and a touchdown while showing off his arm strength on a few deep throws, including a 68-yard touchdown thanks to a coverage bust that was still an impressive throw deep downfield that Kelley made look effortless.
He’s still learning and adding polish to his game, including growing more natural playing under center. He was picked off on a throw late in the scrimmage. He’s also learning when to take some zip off his throws, evidenced by him pulverizing a receiver with a laser on a quick slant in the scrimmage. But he has plenty of time to grow.
“Cole looks good,” senior receiver Keon Hatcher said. “There’s a learning curve. That quarterback position is very hard. You’ve got to come in here and really just dive into that book. And I feel like he’s done that and he looks really good.”
Kelley won’t play this year, but the potential is clearly there for the Hogs’ youngest quarterback.