Stand-outs Limited to Jefferson, TeSlaa, but Others Showed Promise

Extended glimpse at Razorbacks on Saturday gave hint as what fans might see this weekend

FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. – When watching the Arkansas Razorbacks practice on Saturday, there weren't a lot of stand-out players with the exception of Isaac TeSlaa and KJ Jefferson. 

Jordan Crook and Luke Hasz each had a moment worth noting, which will be addressed in a few paragraphs, and the offensive line as a whole looked solid, but finding individuals who jumped off the page were hard to come by.

It's still taking time to get used to all of the new faces on the Razorbacks, so notes are done by player number while watching practice until certain players give a reason, good or bad, to remember their name when it comes to seeing the number on their jerseys. On Saturday the number that kept getting written down was No. 4. 

No. 4 reaches back and makes a great adjustment on a crossing route over the middle that's thrown behind him to avoid a pair of linebackers in tight coverage from picking it off. Great hands on that catch.

No. 4 running so all alone in the secondary it almost looks like he's been intentionally allowed to run free.

No. 4 beats his man on a sideline route to the end zone and makes a really good catch.

As Razorback fans will find out when they watch the spring game on Saturday, No. 4 is TeSlaa and his improvement from Day 1 until this past weekend is already pretty dramatic. He's working with the first unit and the best thing is it looks like they're moving him around a bit and not pigeon-holing him. 

A full summer and early fall with this group of coaches and conditioning program and he could evolve into an effective option come fall. 

As for Jefferson, he looks as smooth as ever. His comfort in the pocket and trust in his arm appears to have improved even more under Enos.

While he's a quality runner, the team has always performed better statistically when his carries are limited. This new staff has shown more trust in Jefferson as a passer and is doing what it can to add a few more tools in an already deadly arsenal.

If this receiving corps can develop, everything is there for the veteran quarterback to take over as one of the most recognized quarterbacks in college football. However, the key to that happening might be to snag an elite No. 1 receiver in the transfer portal as a gift to all the Razorback moms across the state for Mother's Day.

There's potential for solid twos and threes, but there's still a lot of work to be done if a top level SEC receiver is going to be crafted from the current receivers in time for the conference opener against LSU in Baton Rouge.

On the bright side, tight end Luke Hasz looks like he has something to bring to the table if he can be used in a non-traditional way. His size isn't big enough to be an on the line blocking tight end at 6'3", 223, but the way he moves as a receiver is going to make it hard to keep him off the field.

Hasz took off on a deep route that drew coverage by South Florida linebacker transfer Antonio Grier. Despite Grier having solid coverage for a linebacker and help coming from the secondary, Jefferson dropped a perfect pass over Hasz's shoulder that he came away with for a big gain.

It was excellent concentration by the freshman and a picture perfect display of soft hands. He's going to create match-up problems at times and if he can keep building trust with Jefferson, it could become a strong working relationship that Arkansas fans will see at work quite regularly.

Speaking of tight ends, Landon Rogers, who first arrived as a quarterback meant to be converted to tight end, is now a 6'4", 205 receiver who is starting to show promise. Back-up quarterback Jacolby Criswell found Rogers on the sideline in double coverage and the red-shirt sophomore from Little Rock came away with a great catch before going out of bounds.

Considering how much opportunity there is in the receiver group, it might be too early to count Rogers out as a future diamond in the rough. There were a lot of dropped balls, so if he can show a steady hand, Rogers might be able to squeeze his way into the line-up as a fifth receiver.

It should also be noted that while he's still a little rough around the edges, freshman quarterback Malachi Singleton throws the best ball of any of the quarterbacks from a receiver standpoint. He has a strong arm that sails the ball with little effort and it lands gently in the hands of the receivers regardless of depth and velocity.

He's a little too strong on his deep routes, but it's easy to tell how much the receivers love when he's the one throwing quick hits over the middle. Once he learns to stop staring down his intended target and gets his timing down on deeper throws, Singleton can become one of the more effective passers at Arkansas in a long time.

Defensively, two players who deserved an eyebrow raise were Jordan Crook and TJ Metcalf. 

Crook looked great coming up and closing fast on passes coming out of the backfield. He's aggressive, but also plays with his eyes up. 

As for Metcalf, the freshman appeared to have the most understanding of how to use the sideline as an extra defender when trying to handle Hasz on a passing play. All of the freshmen in the secondary had a lot on their plate while trying to adjust at the college level, but with as much detail-oriented coaching as they're getting, it could be the position group that makes the biggest jump from March to August.

The Spring Game is at noon on Saturday and can been seen on SEC Network+ and ESPN+. 

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