FAYETTEVILLE — Filling the leadership and production void left by Grant Morgan and Hayden Henry was among the top challenges for Arkansas heading into the 2022 season.
Morgan, who won the 2021 Burlsworth Trophy and became a bonafide All-SEC linebacker during his time with the Razorbacks, totaled 212 tackles in his final two years. He also served as an unquestioned voice of the team.
Henry, in recent seasons, was Morgan’s running mate at the second level. An old-school type of player who fit Arkansas coach Sam Pittman’s brand of defensive football like a glove, Henry added 101 stops last fall, as well.
Some would consider it likely that the Razorbacks will miss what both players brought to the table at some point next season. But as Arkansas’ spring practices begin to wind down, there is a good deal of confidence that it will continue to operate smoothly at the position.
Returning to the fold is Bumper Pool, and alongside him is Alabama transfer Drew Sanders and multiple intriguing young pieces.
Pool and Sanders have run with the first-team defense since Chris Paul, a redshirt freshman, was concussed during the team’s first scrimmage. Paul, though, returned to action Tuesday and quickly found his footing.
Pittman considers Paul to be one of the Razorbacks’ top three linebackers.
“He was running with the 1s before he got the concussion,” Pittman said Tuesday. “But I like his physicality. He's very bright, very smart, can run. I think he's going to really help us a lot.
“It was good to get him back out there.”
In Dec. 2020, Paul, a coach's son from Crisp County High School in Georgia, was described by Pittman as a mean, physical linebacker.
“Pooh is a big one,” he added. “He’s a mike. We needed a little more size there at linebacker.”
The Razorbacks brought in even more in the form of freshman Jordan Crook, who stands 6-0, 227 pounds, according to Arkansas’ spring roster.
Without the services of Paul, Crook received second-team snaps last week. He flashed in Tuesday’s workout with a pass breakup and burst running to the ball.
It is early, but Crook appears to be making a push to contribute in Year 1 in some form or fashion.
“He’s one of the harder working young guys I’ve ever seen, so he’s going to be a good player,” Pittman said. “He’s thick, and he can run. He plays really hard. Again, another smart guy. But he plays extremely hard and wants to be coached.
“He’s exactly what you want in a young guy, which you can kind of mold how you want, because he wants to be good and he has the athletic ability to be good.”
Asked last week for his impressions of Crook, Sanders noted the freshman is ahead of the game mentally relative to many players his age. Taurean Carter, one of the winners of the spring along the defensive line, labeled Crook “a dog.”
“He’s been playing real well. He’s real fast downhill,” Sanders said. “He’s real aggressive and the plays he’s making...He’s fun to watch.
“He’s making a lot of plays and doing good things.”
Defensive coordinator Barry Odom is pleased with the progress of the group as a whole. Last weekend, he also touted the work of in-state products Jackson Woodard (Little Rock Christian) and Kaden Henley (Shiloh Christian).
Ideally, Odom would like to enter the season with five players he is certain can help the team succeed. That has led to quality competition in the room.
“Once we get a guy defensively, I don't look at what year he is. Is he a senior, or is he a freshman? He's our guy,” Odom said. “Let's get him coached up and ready to go play winning ball. Crook and Henley have only been here for a couple of months. We're yelling and screaming at them but they ought to be going to biology class in high school.
“But I'm glad they're here because they've shown so far they've got an opportunity to get in position to help us this year in some role, in some capacity.”