FAYETTEVILLE — It’s happened to both T.J. Hammonds and De’Vion Warren before.
The Arkansas underclassmen sometimes get mistaken for each other by tutors while walking around the academic room in the Student-Athlete Success Center.
“Everybody thinks we're twins or something,” Hammonds said.
Both could be in for an increase in face time and exposure after their performances in Arkansas’ 38-37 win over Ole Miss on Saturday.
Hammonds was a standout on offense, running for a team-high 84 yards on 11 carries. Warren earned SEC Special Teams Player of the Week honors after returning five kickoffs for 145 yards.
For Hammonds, it was a breakout performance after moving back to running back from receiver following freshman Chase Hayden’s season-ending injury. Both the yardage and attempts were easily career-highs after the sophomore entered the game with just 22 career carries for 149 yards.
“It's a great fit for me,” Hammonds said of playing running back. “Everybody thinks so and I think so. After being there and playing my sophomore year at receiver in college, it's better at running back.”
The Little Rock native began working at receiver in the spring, but injured his meniscus in fall camp for the second straight year, then hurt his ankle early in the season. Getting healthy and establishing a role were both challenges.
“Everybody is anxious to get on the field,” Hammonds said. “It's just patience. That what it is. Whatever coach wanted me to do, I was there to do it.”
But he was Arkansas’ most explosive player on offense against the Rebels, ripping off runs of 23, 22 and 17 yards. Warren rivaled that explosiveness with his play on special teams, averaging nearly 30 yards per return and nearly busting a 45-yard return for a score.
Saturday wasn’t the first time he’s flashed this year. Since taking over for Deon Stewart, he’s leading the SEC with a 29.2 average and returned a kick 100 yards for a touchdown against Auburn.
He hasn’t had a role at receiver to this point in the year, the result of playing behind sophomore Deon Stewart, who has elevated his performance recently. But Warren’s electric play with the ball in his hands along with his growth at receiver may put him in a position to contribute on offense.
“(He’s looked) very, very good,” receivers coach Michael Smith said. “You’ll see him starting to play more, too, it’s just hard for me when we go into 11 personnel to take Deon out of the game. But to be honest, he’s playing very, very well.
“… When he has the ball in his hands, he’s pretty magical. He’s grown so much as a wide receiver in our program.”
Warren and Hammonds not only resemble each other close enough for people to call them twins, they’re two of the fastest players on the roster.
Who has the speed is edge is up for debate.
“He's fast,” Hammonds said. “We be having like competitions to see who's faster. But he's slow.”
“I don’t know about that,” Warren said. “I think he’s just kinda boasting about that. … I think I got him.”
Regardless, both players’ speed played a big role in the win over the Rebels and Arkansas hopes to utilize it down the stretch of the season.