The SEC West is filled with uncertainty going into the 2023-24 football season. What is Mississippi State going to look like without Mike Leach? Has Hugh Freeze done enough in the portal to make Auburn relevant again? Will Alabama’s Quarterback situation be the beginning of the end of the Nick Saban era? The West is as unpredictable as it has ever been, and Arkansas is no different.
The Razorbacks support a whole new cast of players and coaches. More than a third of the team and nearly half of the coaching staff will call themselves Hogs for the first time, including new offensive and defensive coordinators. Enos has technically been at Arkansas before, but that was years ago.
With the entire team learning a new playbook, anything can happen this year, and it wouldn’t be a surprise. Here are six bold predictions for Arkansas going into the 2023-24 football season:
Secondary goes from last in FBS to top 5 in SEC
There won’t be another position more improved the season than the defensive backs. Travis Williams and staff have done an excellent job recruiting talent in the transfer portal. The first names to jump out are Alfahiym Walcott and Lorando “Snaxx” Johnson from Baylor. Both were starters at the Big 12 school and played great in the spring game.
Arkansas also managed to pull in Jaheim Singletary from Georgia. The former 5-star was the fifth-best corner in the class of 2022 and ranked No. 27 in the country. The only reason he didn’t play at Georgia was the insane amount of talent he had in front of him.
Transfers Keeyon Stewart (TCU) and Arthur Brathwaite (Western Kentucky), and true freshman Jaylon Braxton add quality depth and can even push for starting spots.
And don’t forget about the few returning players. One, in particular, is Dwight McGlothern. On3 Sports ranked him 91st in its top 100 returning players list and Pro Football Focus graded him at a 77.2 last season. That’s good for the eighth-best returning CB in the SEC.
Without a doubt, Arkansas has boosted its talent in the secondary. Add in the fact that Williams’ style of defense is extremely aggressive, giving opposing quarterbacks less time to throw the ball, the position should end up being one of the best in the conference.
Breakout season for Rashod Dubinion
Since Sam Pittman took the reins at Arkansas, the running game has been the bread and butter of the offense. It’s no surprise when you think of Pittman’s background as an offensive line coach and with KJ Jefferson as the QB. Now, add in one of the best RB rooms in the country, and it’s a miracle Arkansas throws at all.
Raheim “Rocket” Sanders, AJ Green, Dominique Johnson, and Rashod Dubinion can all take over a game, but specifically, Dubinion has the potential to break out this season.
Dubinion has elite stop-and-start abilities. He can cut on a dime and accelerate to full speed as well as anyone in the country. He can bounce outside if he needs to or bang it inside for a few yards. In traffic, he never stops his feet and can bounce off of would-be tacklers for extra yards. The one thing holding him back was his power. With an offseason of strength and conditioning under his belt, fans should see a major improvement
Sanders will still get the lion’s share of carries, but so did Quinshon Judkins of Ole Miss last year. That didn’t stop Zack Evans from having a great year. If Dubinion can tap into his potential, Arkansas could have its best one-two punch since Darren McFadden and Felix Jones.
At least two receivers will record 800+ yards
One of the biggest question marks about this team is the wide receivers. Arkansas lost five of its top WRs to the NFL or the transfer portal, making sophomore Bryce Stevens its most seasoned pass catcher. To compete they had to bring in transfers of their own to fill the gaps. However, Arkansas looked in some “unconventional” places for talent.
Tyrone Broden from Bowling Greene, Andrew Armstrong from Texas A&M Commerce (FCS), and Isaac TeSlaa from Hillsdale College (DII) all have the measurements to be power-5 athletes. They dominated their competition. But now they are being thrown into a conference that boasts some of the best secondaries in the NCAA. Will they be able to hang with SEC competition, or will they be overwhelmed by it?
The answer is yes, they can absolutely hang. On Monday’s edition of Hawg Sports LIVE, Trey Biddy went over some of the offseason drill results. The player that stood out the most to Biddy was TeSlaa. He tied Armstrong for the longest broad jump on the team at 10’5 and TeSlaa recorded the second-highest vertical at 38 inches. Not to mention the guy is also a human fly trap.
Another candidate for an 800+ yard season was already on the team. Isaiah Sategna was a true freshman last year and played very few snaps. In the 2023 spring game, he finally got to show off what he could do. He led the team in receptions and touchdowns, including a 65-yard bomb from KJ Jefferson.
If TeSlaa and Sategna can live up to their potential, Arkansas could have a sneaky good passing attack. It could also open up the field for talented but lesser known receivers like Broden, Armstrong, and Stevens.
Cam Little makes 90% of his field goals
After a drop from 83.3% to 81.3%, Cam Little seemed to drop even further in the minds of the media. Nearly every preseason All-SEC list had Little as the fourth-best kicker in the league, behind kickers like Mizzou’s Harrison Mevis who only made 78.6% of his attempts last season. One can’t help but think that the infamous doink off the top of the goal post against Texas A&M has something to do with this newfound perception.
Fortunately for the Razorbacks, Little looks as good as ever. He went 3-for-3 during the spring game, including a 58-yard field goal from the middle of the field. Fans should expect the Moore, Oklahoma native to be even better come August.
Arkansas will lead the SEC in sacks… again
Last season, Arkansas led the league in sacks with 42. Seventeen were from Drew Sanders (NFL) and Jordan Domineck (Colorado) who are no longer on the team. At first glance, the chance for Arkansas to repeat that success looks bleak. But on a closer look, they have the parts to do it.
Deke Adams has done a great job bringing in good talent. Trajan Jeffcoat had a drop-off in production the last year at Mizzou, but his sophomore and junior seasons were pretty good recording six and three and a half sacks, respectively. John Morgan III also did well wreaking havoc in the offensive backfield. He recorded 12.5 sacks in the last three years.
The Hogs might not have their top two pass rushers from last year, but the players they are returning are no slouches. Former four-star Zach Williams and Landon Jackson are returning on the defensive line. Williams was third on the team with four and a half sacks. He’s a multiyear vet with tons of gas left in the tank. Jackson was dealing with a nagging injury all season but still managed to come in fifth with 3. Now that he’s one hundred percent healthy, he’ll be a force to be reckoned with.
The DL is stacked, but the sack leader was Drew Sanders, a linebacker. Who could make up for him? Another transfer, Jaheim Thomas, and Chris “Pooh” Paul, can certainly pick up the slack. Thomas has the same body type as Sanders. Thomas is a little less aggressive than the now Denver Bronco, but he’s faster. Paul on the other hand, was No. 4 in sacks last year with limited reps. Together, they could easily match Sanders’ numbers.
Last but certainly not least, Travis Williams is bringing the most aggressive defense fans have seen under Pittman. Just stylistically, Arkansas should produce more sacks.
KJ Jefferson throws for 3500+ yards and 30+ TDs
Jefferson is already one of the best QBs to play for the University of Arkansas but, this will mark his third year as the starter. It will be the first time Arkansas has had a three-year starter at QB since Brandon Allen’s tenure between 2013 and 2015. That experience is something that not many other schools have.
He has great, although unproven, weapons all around him, especially at tight ends. Transfer Var’Keys Gumms and true freshman Luke Hasz will give Jefferson an avenue he hasn’t had the opportunity to use. Add the fact that Arkansas’ RBs make great receivers, and the Hogs have the potential for an explosive passing attack in 2023.
But none of that matters to some. He’s consistently underrated by sports media companies like On3 and personalities like Brandon of Barstool Sports. Just today, the host of That SEC Podcast, Michael Bratton, posted a graphic displaying Jefferson as the best QB in the SEC. The comments were full of KJ haters. They should tread carefully, though. When KJ Jefferson was ranked dead last in the conference going into 2021, he took it personally and showed everyone just how good he could be. The last thing the SEC needs is KJ Jefferson with a chip on his shoulder.
With all that considered, it’s not too far-fetched to believe Jefferson could reach these numbers. Last season he only recorded 2,648 yards and 24 touchdowns through the air, but he missed two games and played through another hurt. Adding his per-game passing average for those two missed games, Jefferson would’ve had nearly 3,200 yards and 28 touchdowns. If Jefferson can stay healthy, he can absolutely hit those marks.
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