FAYETTEVILLE -- Running back T.J. Hammonds will not be with the University of Arkansas football team during spring drills, Coach Chad Morris announced Monday.
Morris did not elaborate further, other than to say: "He's just not on the team right now. That's kind of where we're at."
Morris was also asked whether Hammonds was going to transfer.
"Is he going to play somewhere else? I just don't know that," Morris said.
Hammonds rushed for 28 yards on 10 carries and had 4 catches for 84 yards, including a 64-yard touchdown at Colorado State, while playing in four game last season. He later underwent a follow-up knee surgery and maintained a redshirt in 2018.
A student listed as Theron Hammonds, which is the player's first name, is currently in the UA's student directory.
Morris elaborated on the running back slot, where starter Rakeem Boyd is also out for spring practice after shoulder surgery. Sophomore Jordon Curtis has moved to the running back room from cornerback.
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"We've got to get fundamentally sound," Morris said. "We've got to go back to the tracks of our zone and our outside zone and power and counter. Those things like that have got to be -- we've got to perfect those things, regardless of who's back there."
Hill headed in
Chad Morris confirmed that basketball signee Justice Hill of Little Rock Christian, a midterm enrollee, eventually will join the football team at a position to be determined by Hill.
"Obviously, we're going to get to the point when he'll be out [to practice]," Morris said. "We'll wait and see on that. I've met with him, talked with him, and it'll be at the position that he feels and we both feel he can contribute. I've left it up to him.
"Whether it's corner, wide receiver, quarterback, running back, whatever it may be. We know he's an athlete that's had a lot of success and won a state championship, and any time you can have a guy on your team like that, we're excited."
Morris said he would talk to basketball Coach Mike Anderson about when Hill would move to football, projecting it might be around spring break.
Personnel news
Coach Chad Morris, speaking at a pre-spring news conference Monday, added a handful of players to the injured list, which already included running back Rakeem Boyd (shoulder), defensive tackle Briston Guidry (knee) and cornerback Britto Tutt (knee).
Morris said offensive lineman Kirby Adcock has suffered a hip injury that will keep him out of spring drills, and linebacker Hayden Henry will not go through contact work. Safety Micahh Smith will be available for drill work but cannot have contact.
Morris did not specify the injuries for Henry or Smith.
Walk-on linemen Audry Horn (toe) and Cameron Vail (foot) are also injured to start spring work, Morris said.
Safety dance
Safeties coach Ron Cooper is happy to have back junior starter Kamren Curl and sophomores Myles Mason and Joe Foucha, who got limited playing time last season.
"Both those guys, you know ... we didn't redshirt and played probably eight games, played a lot of special teams," Cooper said of Foucha and Mason. "At least they got their feet wet a little bit, they got a chance to compete in an SEC football game.
"It'll be their first spring, but they won't be hearing the scheme for the first time. I'm extremely excited to watch those two start spring off."
Cooper said it's time for Curl to shine.
"I'm expecting Kam to have the best spring," Cooper said. "He understands the scheme. He understands it already. Now we can hone in on technique, fundamentals and footwork, and understanding what the offense is trying to do, understanding the different route combinations. It's time for him to move forward that way."
Line 'em up
Offensive line coach Dustin Fry had his projected starting five ready to rattle off during Thursday's media opportunity at the Smith Center.
Fry made sure to point out his depth chart will be fluid throughout the spring.
Returning starters in left tackle Colton Jackson and center Ty Clary lead the projected first team, which also features left guard Austin Capps, right guard Shane Clenin and right tackle Noah Gatlin. Jackson and Capps are the lone seniors.
The backups look to be Myron Cunningham at left tackle, Austin Nix at left guard, Silas Robinson at center, Ryan Winkel at right guard and Dalton Wagner at right tackle. Junior-college signee Chibueze Nwanna will compete at both tackle spots, Fry said.
Traylor honored
Running backs coach Jeff Traylor was inducted into the East Texas Coaches Association Hall of Honor during a ceremony Saturday.
Traylor won three state championships during 15 years (2000-14) as head coach at Gilmer High School in east Texas. He compiled a 175-26 record, which also included two runner-up finishes, and earned the title of athletic director before he joined the college ranks.
A graduate of Stephen F. Austin, Traylor was an assistant coach at Texas (2015-16) and SMU (2017) before coming with Coach Chad Morris to Arkansas for the 2018 season. Traylor was named Scout.com's Big 12 recruiter of the year in his first season at Texas.
Harris' spring
Defensive coordinator John Chavis indicated senior linebacker De'Jon "Scoota" Harris will get the drill work he needs but won't be overextended this spring.
"Let me say this: I'm going to make sure Scoota gets all the work he needs this spring, and there's some areas that he needs to improve on that are going to help him down the road, OK?" Chavis said. "But I promise you this: I'm not going to go and beat him up in spring practice.
"He's a proven player. We've got young guys we've got to get ready to play. He's going to get the work he needs, and he's going to help get some of those younger guys ready. That's going to be his role. If he knows it well enough to teach it, then he understands it and he's going to be able to play better."
Chavis was asked who might be pushing for first-team reps this spring.
"I can say this and not go out on a limb," he said. "I can't see anybody beating Scoota out. If they do, we're going to have a really, really good football team.
"When you start looking at it, [Giovanni] LaFrance, Hayden Henry, Dee Edwards, Bumper Pool, Andrew Parker and then when Zach [Zimos] gets here, those guys will take up the big bulk of what gets done at linebacker."
More special
Tight ends coach Barry Lunney Jr., who has been given the added title of special-teams coordinator, said the responsibilities still will be shared and that the kicking game needs to improve in 2019.
"It's really important for us to have a team effort and have a lot of position coaches involved and to have different voices that are in front of our team," Lunney said of the oversight on the kicking units. "We're going to continue that model. Obviously, with the transition of me being named special-teams coordinator, that's going to involve me having more input, more organization decisions, maybe even strategy decisions based on game day."
Lunney said the collaborative effort starts with new special-teams analyst Daniel Da Prato.
"Obviously, he's limited in what he can do from [an NCAA] standpoint, but he's very much going to be kind of the brains, to a degree, behind our overall scheme, and I'm going to help apply that in practice," he said.
Coach Chad Morris' aim of having special-teams players be difference-makers did not pan out in 2018, as the coverage units gave up multiple touchdowns and the punt team was subpar.
"Our change moving forward is to impact the game in a positive way," Lunney said. "It's not good enough for us just to survive the game, we've got to find ways to impact these football games."
'Jackpot' Ingram
Count cornerbacks coach Mark Smith as an advocate for new defensive tackles coach Kenny Ingram.
"I love Kenny," Smith said. "He's been great. Even from the interview process when he was in the room, he's just an electric kind of guy that lights up the room."
Smith reiterated Coach Chad Morris' goal of hiring a great person and great coach who would fit in with the staff.
"He's going to be a great role model for the guys in his room, and he's going to be a great recruiter," Smith said. "He's all of those things. We really hit the jackpot with Kenny, and we're just glad that he's here."
Sports on 02/26/2019