The Arkansas Razorbacks hit the midway point of their season at 2-3, already a half-win better than the preseason Las Vegas over-under win projection.
Not to beat an old horse, but everyone in SEC country knows the University of Arkansas’ record should be 3-2 at this point, with a blown referee’s call at Auburn costing the Hogs a victory.
The Razorbacks are the darling of the SEC, largely because the team is playing harder and clearly believes in what Coach Sam Pittman and his staff are selling.
Arkansas has not been favored in any games this season, not even Saturday vs. Tennessee, though the line dropped during the course of the week. If the Razorbacks can notch win No. 3 prior to heading to No. 8 Florida, perhaps they could earn the favorite’s tag for games against struggling LSU or Missouri.
Here is the midseason report card for the Razorbacks:
Quarterback
Feleipe Franks has performed just about as well as anyone expected, bringing much needed stability and maturity to the position. He’s completed 66% of his passes (105 of 159) with an 11-3 touchdown-to-interception ratio. His only pick since the opener was a tipped pass over the middle vs. Ole Miss. The trade-off to less-risky throws is a few more sacks and some nonproductive scrambles as Franks has held the ball too long a few times per game.
Franks’ arm and stature are reminiscent of Arkansas great Ryan Mallett. His running is an improvement over Mallett, but those long legs take a second to get going and he’s stumbled quite often, though his 28-yard gains last week are the team’s longest of the season. Bottom line: His running is a net plus.
KJ Jefferson and Malik Hornsby are the QBs of the future, so they probably need some playing time here and there and not just the ineffective goal-line sets they’ve gotten.
GRADE: B
Running back
After Georgia clamped down on the Hogs in the opener, it took lead tailback Rakeem Boyd four more games to get rolling with his first 100-yard effort at Texas A&M. Boyd (51-188, 3.7 ypc) has the Razorbacks’ only two rushing touchdowns. Trelon Smith (61-251, 4.1 ypc) has been a strong complement to Boyd, and he had a big game at Auburn in his absence when Boyd sat out with an injury.
Both top tailbacks have been solid in pass protection, and Smith in particular has been a bonus as a pass catcher. A’Montae Spivey (4-11, 2.8 ppc) has the only other RB carries.
The Hogs’ jet sweeps, end arounds and reverses with receivers have mostly been stopped or really backfired, like the T.J. Hammonds safety vs. Georgia.
GRADE: C-plus
Receivers/tight ends
Kendal Briles’ staff made it a point to feed Treylon Burks (26-366, 14.1 ypc, 4 TD), particularly in scoring range, and the result is Burks’ emergence as one of the nation’s best young stars. He’s already posted multiple highlight-reel plays this season. And to think last year’s staff could not manufacture a TD for him. Burks’ 91.5 yards per game ranks 25th in the country. He is averaging 119 yards per game in the three games he’s been healthy, and he’s been a key part in the extension of the run game with option throws to the flanks.
Good things are happening for senior De’Vion Warren (12-253, 3) whose 21.1 yards per catch ranks seventh among all FBS players with at least 10 receptions. Mike Woods (18-220, 1, 12.2 ypc) has been a steady veteran presence as expected. Tyson Morris (4-39, 1) and Trey Knox (4-33) are the only other wideouts with catches. Knox has had trouble creating clear separation.
Blocking from the group has been OK, but it needs to improve to bolster the run game.
The same could be said for the tight ends, though their improvement the past couple of weeks has been noticeable. Hudson Henry (12-75, 1) and Blake Kern (8-92) had their best combined pass-catching game last week.
GRADE: B-minus
Offensive Line
The thought is this unit will continue to strengthen under the tutelage of position coach Brad Davis and head Coach Sam Pittman, and with improved recruiting and development. So far it has been a slow build, though the front is coming off its best performance of the season at Texas A&M.
The coaches have worked largely with seven on the front: Myron Cunningham and Brady Latham on the left side; Ricky Stromberg and Ty Clary at center; and Clary, Beaux Limmer, Noah Gatlin and Dalton Wagner on the right side. It appeared the first real playing time of the season by the veterans Clary and Wagner at Auburn served as a spark.
If the unit can create creases on the interior and seal the edge on Briles’ attacks on the flank, they’ll further open up the passing game the second half of the season.
GRADE: C
Defensive line
The last two Arkansas coaching staffs should take note that position coach Derrick LeBlanc and coordinator Barry Odom have made it an emphasis to substitute at both inside and edge positions, and it has paid off with fresher legs in the second halves of games. In Pittman’s words, they have chosen to trust the players. Jonathan Marshall is having a strong senior year at tackle, with Isaiah Nichols, Xavier Kelly, Taurean Carter and Marcus Miller contributing key reps. Their work in the three-man approach vs. Mississippi State and Ole Miss cannot be undervalued because it made quarterbacks K.J. Costello and Matt Corral uncomfortable.
The group of ends has rotated with great frequency, even while standout Dorian Gerald missed three games with an ankle injury. Zach Williams, Eric Gregory, Julius Coates and Mataio Soli have been steady, though not spectacular. Amping up the pass rush a couple of notches would be a key improvement in the second half.
GRADE: C-plus
Linebackers
The top two performers, Bumper Pool and Grant Morgan, have been playing hurt almost from the jump, but they’ve continued to produce. Pool had a stinger in Week 2, added broken ribs in Week 3 and missed only one game. Morgan suffered an elbow injury in Week 2 and has played through it, so successfully in fact that he earned national and SEC awards for his play in a 33-21 win over Ole Miss that included 19 tackles and a game-sealing pick-six. The duo has broken up many passes over the middle in Odom’s zone schemes, and they’ve tackled much more forcefully than in recent years because of their knowledge of the schemes. Hayden Henry has provided quality snaps when called upon, and Andrew Parker has contributed in places, but the depth hasn’t gotten much beyond them, which is reminiscent of the past several years.
GRADE: B
Secondary
Unquestionably the most improved unit on the team by a solid margin, even with key losses in starting cornerbacks Jarques McClellion and Jerry Jacobs. The play of the safeties has been a huge step in the right direction, led by Jalen Catalon, whose film study, on-field diagnosis and tackling have been critical. Fellow safeties Joe Foucha, Simeon Blair, Myles Mason and Myles Slusher also have played well. The cornerback play by Montaric Brown, Greg Brooks Jr., Hudson Clark, LaDarrius Bishop and Jacobs (before his opt out) had been very strong prior to the Texas A&M game. Contributions by Khari Johnson, Devin Bush and Malik Chavis should be on the rise.
GRADE: A-minus
Special teams
The Razorbacks’ punting average is up by a big margin, but net punting has not really improved from last year due to a few long returns. The punt team has given up two blocks, low-lighted by a touchdown recovery at Auburn in a razor-thin outcome, and the punt return squad seemed inexplicably surprised by Ole Miss’ 47-yard fake punt on a fourth and long. A.J. Reed’s field goal kicking has been good from medium and short range, but poor from long range.
Opponents have logged so many touchbacks on kickoffs and punted high and deep that ace return men Treylon Burks and De’Vion Warren have made absolutely no impact in the kicking game, an unexpected development.
The muffed PAT hold with a slick ball after the Razorbacks’ first touchdown at Auburn had negative repercussions the rest of the game, though an open two-point conversion pass dropped by Knox could have helped rectify the error.
With a dedicated special teams coordinator this season in Scott Fountain, the kicking game was supposed to be edgier and clearly improved but it is not.
GRADE: D
Coaching
The most critical steps taken by Coach Sam Pittman and this staff — sowing confidence in his players and in the new systems on both sides of the ball, and playing hard under all circumstances — are already in the books. No one doubts the Razorbacks are a tough out this season, a crystal clear immediate turnaround. The rally from a 17-0 deficit at Auburn to taking the lead and ostensibly securing a win with Foucha’s late fumble recovery is all the proof anyone would need to see the drastic change in team belief. Even with a shaky running attack through four games, the Razorbacks were in contention almost throughout each contest, and they hung on to win against dynamic offenses in the fourth quarter of both their wins over the Mississippi schools. The defensive scheming by Odom and his staff will go down as one of the best coaching jobs in the SEC in 2020.
GRADE: A-minus