FAYETTEVILLE — Second-year Arkansas coach Sam Pittman sees a lot of potential in Isaiah Nichols. He believes in the former Springdale High standout.
That is why Pittman urged Nichols to step into a larger role on the Razorbacks’ defensive line between the end of the 2020 season and this spring. More than that, he wants Nichols to lead.
A redshirt junior, Nichols was up for the challenge and has shown as much through eight spring practices.
“I’ve been working on that a lot, trying to bring guys with me,” he said Thursday. “They see my work ethic. A lot of the guys work hard and we’re a hard-working group, so I’ve been trying to be more vocal and telling Eric Gregory, (Taurean Carter), (Dorian Gerald), like, step up, stay stuff.
“If you see something that’s wrong, say something about it and encourage these guys.”
Nichols saw his playing time increase last fall, earning seven starts in nine games played. He had a half-sack at Auburn, finished the year with 24 tackles and made the first start of his career in the season opener against Georgia.
To cap the season, Nichols recorded a season-high six tackles against Alabama. Individual success and more team success than he had known in previous seasons made him hungry for more, so he attacked the offseason.
His mission was to become a valuable third-down player and a more effective pass rusher.
“This year I want to play more in the backfield,” he said. “I’ve got a little experience under my belt — more than last year — so I just want to use the experiences that I’ve been through and all the games that I’ve played and use that to motivate me to get better.
“Playing in the backfield, that’s what we do as defensive linemen.”
Listed at 6-3, 281 pounds on the Razorbacks’ spring roster, the defensive tackle said he is on the right track to getting to a good playing weight. He is trying to put on more. Nichols was listed at 290 pounds last fall.
Building solid muscle has been a big emphasis, he added, and Arkansas’ support staff has been by his side.
“When you get to the NFL, everybody is 300 (pounds) unless you’re an edge rusher, so I think definitely putting some weight on and getting stronger in the weight room (is important),” Nichols said. “I’ve talked to Coach (Jamil) Walker and he’s like, ‘You can gain weight and be solid.’
“The more you gain weight, especially with the weights they have us doing in the strength and conditioning, the nutrition staff, the nutrition plans they draw up, they’re doing a great job with that to help me out with that.”
Nichols has been repping with the first-team defense in practices this spring, aiming to fill the hole left by Jonathan Marshall, who is now preparing for the upcoming NFL draft. It is a tall task, but one he is eager to take on.
He is certainly more vocal than Marshall. Leadership at the position is growing as the spring progresses.
“You’ve got to bring everybody together, and I can see it develop and we have more guys holding each other accountable, more guys encouraging,” Nichols said. “Like, when we’re going through hard drills like our individuals … we’ve got guys pouring into each other, encouraging each other, bringing everybody along.
“I think the leadership in this group is definitely something that’s developing.”