FAYETTEVILLE -- Dalton Wagner went from being the Arkansas Razorbacks' second-team right tackle to their starting left tackle before the start of fall camp.
"It's a next guy up mentality," offensive coordinator Joe Craddock said. "That's what football is all about. You never know when something can happen.
"The No. 2 guy you always say is one play away from playing."
Wagner, a 6-9 redshirt freshman from Spring Grove, Ill., became the next man up because junior Colton Jackson is recovering from back surgery that is expected to sideline him for the first six games.
The coaching staff decided in July after learning the severity of Jackson's injury that the best option was to switch Wagner from the right side, where he had been the backup to senior Brian Wallace.
"If I didn't have confidence in Dalton, I'd probably be thinking something else," offensive line coach Dustin Fry said. "But I think he's had a good enough spring ball, a good enough summer.
"I told him it's going to be a process and that I'm going to coach you hard, and we'll do extra work, whatever we need. But I have lot of trust in Dalton. Just the way he works and the way he is on himself.
"He's so hard on himself. He's so coachable on all the issues we have, if we have any issues in practice with him. Just talking technique, little things like that."
Wagner, who wasn't available for an interview, has gained 28 pounds since last season and is now up to 302 from 275.
"He's feeling good and looking good," strength and conditioning coach Trumain Carroll said. "He's got more confidence."
While some linemen needed to lose weight, Wagner needed to gain it.
"Dalton has totally transformed his body," Arkansas Coach Chad Morris said. "He looks the part. Coach Fry is really excited about the potential of this young man."
Wagner has the advantage of playing beside senior left guard Hjalte Froholdt, a preseason All-SEC pick who has started 25 consecutive games.
"I have all the faith in him," Froholdt said. "He's going to make mistakes, and I'm going to be right there to pick him up and make sure he's going the right way.
"It was kind of a late move over to the left side for him, so he has some growing pains there. But honestly, he's doing really well."
Wagner isn't the only option at left tackle.
True freshman Noah Gatlin is working there, and Morris said he has gotten some work with the first-team offense as well as the backups.
Fry said senior Johnny Gibson, the projected starter at right guard, could move to left tackle if necessary. Last season he started at right guard and right and left tackle.
"Johnny is such a savvy football player, but my goal is to leave him in one spot," Fry said. "Because I feel like last year he could never get comfortable and that kind of affects your play a little bit. But he is always an option [at left tackle] if I need to put him out there."
Senior Deion Malone, who has moved back to the offensive line from defense, also could figure into the mix at left tackle, Fry said. He is working at backup right tackle.
Arkansas opens against Eastern Illinois on Sept. 1 and plays at Colorado State on Sept. 8 and is back home against North Texas on Sept. 15 before starting SEC play at Auburn on Sept. 22.
"The nice thing is we have some early-season games that are not gimmes, but at least they're not conference games," Fry said of working Wagner into the starting lineup. "We're not playing Alabama the first week, we're not playing Auburn the first week.
"Not saying Eastern Illinois isn't a good football team, but I think [Wagner] will get quality reps in those games to see what he has. I'm glad our schedule sets up that way."
The timing of moving Wagner to the left side and up to the first team and exploring other options at left tackle, Fry said, also is a plus.
"The good thing -- and you've always got to try to find that positive -- is it happened in the middle of July," Fry said. "Not the middle of August or the middle of September. I'd rather have it happen now so I can have a plan."
Froholdt said he expects Wagner to fill in well for Jackson.
"Dalton's got all the physical tools he needs to succeed at that position, and he cares," Froholdt said. "He truly cares about about the offensive line and becoming better himself."
Sports on 08/06/2018