Myron Cunningham heavier, well taught in Year 2

Myron Cunningham, Arkansas offensive lineman, walks through a play Saturday, March 30, 2019, during Arkansas spring practice at Reynolds Razorback Stadium in Fayetteville.

— In losing the offensive line coach he committed to play for at Arkansas, Myron Cunningham gained two coaches who will oversee his position.

Brad Davis is the Razorbacks’ offensive line coach to replace the departed Dustin Fry, but first-year head coach Sam Pittman will also add his considerable expertise gained over more than two decades coaching college lines.

“I feel like their knowledge of the game is just very, very strong,” Cunningham said. “It helps when you have a head coach who is such a highly recognized offensive line guy. Then you have an offensive line coach who is almost like the second best (behind Pittman). It just really helps, especially when you’re trying to go to that next level. They can teach you so many things. They’ve taught the whole offense things we haven’t known.”

Cunningham said the coaches are trying to make sure the Razorbacks don’t “have a repeat of last year” when they were often pushed around, especially in pass coverage. Arkansas allowed 19 sacks a year ago, including 15 in conference games. Ole Miss, Kentucky, Auburn and LSU all recorded three sacks against the Razorbacks to go along with several other quarterback hurries.

“I think the motivation is to prove not only to everyone else, but prove to ourselves because we know we’re better than that,” Cunningham said of last season. “I think this year we’ll go around with a chip on our shoulder to prove to ourselves…who we are and what we’re capable of. I think that’s our goal.”

Pittman and Davis won't be able to get their linemen in full pads until later this month, but have been able to spend several hours with them this offseason in teaching sessions — in person before the covid-19 outbreak, virtually for several weeks after and in walkthroughs since July 24.

While Davis leads the offensive line room, it hasn’t been uncommon for Pittman to sit in on meetings and give pointers.

Cunningham said one of their focuses has been for the linemen to see the whole field and not just what is in front of them.

“They’re teaching us how to watch coverage structures, how safeties rotate, how to identify blitzes and stuff like that,” Cunningham said.

When it came time to leave Iowa Western Community College following the 2018 season, Cunningham chose Arkansas over Oklahoma. But during the recruiting process he was recruited by Davis, who was then at Missouri.

“Missouri was considered, but there were so many schools coming so fast,” Cunningham said.

Davis and Pittman have both said they want big linemen, a contrast to the previous coaching staff at Arkansas that asked linemen to slim down in order to play at a fast pace. Under new offensive coordinator Kendal Briles, the Razorbacks are expected to keep an uptempo approach, but the linemen have bulked up this offseason.

Cunningham reported for voluntary workouts June 8 at a weight of 320 pounds, a contrast to when he arrived at Arkansas at 287 pounds a year ago. He played last season in the 290s.

He weighed 325 pounds last week.

Cunningham began last season at right guard, but switched to left tackle midway through the campaign when Colton Jackson left the team via a medical hardship. Cunningham is the projected starter at the blindside spot this year.

“I think he’s got a lot of talent, but it’s going to be hard to set on a bull [rusher] at 285 pounds, especially when the D-end weighs 275 pounds,” Pittman said of Cunningham earlier this year. “I just don’t think you can survive without big people on the offensive line or the defensive line. This is a big-person league, basically. It starts up front with both sides of the ball.”

Cunningham isn’t the only lineman to report at a heavier weight this summer. He said all of the returning linemen weighed at least 300 pounds when they came back to campus in June, giving the Razorbacks an appearance that more resembled Pittman’s Arkansas lines that included the likes of Frank Ragnow, Sebastian Tretola, Denver Kirkland and Dan Skipper between 2013-15.

“I like big, athletic guys,” Pittman said. “I don’t know who wouldn’t. But we put a heavy emphasis on strength, on gaining weight. Obviously, gaining the right type of weight. And we’re trying to do that in recruiting.”

To put on the pounds, Cunningham said he focused on eating later in the day and filled his belly with chicken, hamburgers, steaks, potatoes and macaroni and cheese.

“I think it will help, especially on the line of scrimmage,” Cunningham said of the weight gain. “I think it just gives you confidence, for one. Then playing against those rush ends, it’s going to help a lot more.”

Cunningham spent the offseason in Fayetteville and worked out mostly by himself. His workouts consisted of strength exercises provided by Arkansas’ coaching staff and lots of running up and down the street in front of his house.

As more offensive linemen began to migrate back to Fayetteville, he worked out some position mates as spring drew to a close.

It’s a group that should be better this season, if nothing else because they are older. Arkansas returns 77 percent of its games started along the line last season with returning starters including Cunningham (10 starts), center Ty Clary (12), tackle Dalton Wagner (12), guard Ricky Stromberg (11) and guard Shane Clenin (1).

“I feel like our experience is definitely going to help us,” Cunningham said. “I feel like coming back — especially bringing back almost our whole offensive line — is going to be a big help to us.”

Cunningham said he has seen signs that Clenin and redshirt freshman guard Beaux Limmer will be a surprise to some this year. Both players worked out as first-team guards on the first day of walkthroughs two weeks ago.

“I think Shane Clenin has taken a big jump from last year, from not playing last year,” Cunningham said. “I think he’ll have a lot of chances to play this year.

“I think Beaux Limmer will be a great addition to the offensive line.”

Cunningham said he has been pleased by how well linemen came back to campus in shape.

“Coach Pittman had set expectations for us to come back in shape and ready to go, and I feel like … the team has blown those expectations out of the park,” Cunningham said. “I think we’ve come back and we’ve worked harder than most people thought we’d be able to.”

This story originally appeared in the 2020 Hawgs Illustrated football preview