FAYETTEVILLE -- The Arkansas Razorbacks, a dark horse candidate to push toward the top of the SEC West for the first time in 11 years, open training camp on Friday.
Third-year Coach Sam Pittman, who has turned University of Arkansas football from an afterthought to a potential contender, will preview the 25 practices of camp today at Reynolds Razorback Stadium.
Arkansas is coming off a resurgent 9-4 season. The Razorbacks were picked to finish third in the SEC West behind defending SEC champion Alabama and Texas A&M in media voting last month.
Arkansas opens a season chock full of great story lines with a visit by defending College Football Playoff participant Cincinnati on Sept. 3.
The non-conference schedule alone is filled with intrigue. A home game against Missouri State on Sept. 17 will bring back former Coach Bobby Petrino, who was the engineer of Arkansas' last run to relevancy between 2008-11.
The Razorbacks also travel to national power BYU on Oct. 15 and host explosive Liberty and former Arkansas State and Ole Miss Coach Hugh Freeze on Nov. 5.
Stack on the annual gallery of difficult conference games and the Razorbacks will clearly contend for having the most difficult schedule in college football yet again.
Pittman's media session will set the tone for what's to come. A strategy devised last year by UA associate athletic director for communications Kyle Parkinson will allow all 10 full-time assistant coaches to meet with the media one time through the course of camp to talk about their position groups, starting with running backs coach and recruiting ace Jimmy Smith on Saturday.
Pittman, a regular interview subject and media favorite during his stint as Arkansas offensive line coach (2013-15) under Bret Bielema, took key steps on his rise to head coach during his media sessions in the Fred W. Smith Center those years.
Current Arkansas coordinators Barry Odom, Kendal Briles and Scott Fountain are scheduled to have their media opportunities in succession late in the week of Aug. 14-20.
Arkansas does not have the greatest number of returning starters in the SEC but it does have lots of veteran talent on both sides of the ball.
The Razorbacks bring back almost every key contributor for a running attack that led the Power 5 with 227.8 rushing yards per game, including quarterback and leading rusher KJ Jefferson. Left tackle Myron Cunningham, tight end Blake Kern and tailback Trelon Smith are the only key parts to the run game who are no longer on the roster.
Raheim Sanders (578 rushing yards) and Dominique Johnson (575) teamed with Jefferson (664) and Smith (598) to give Arkansas its first quartet of runners with 500-plus rushing yards since Ike Forte (983), Jerry Eckwood (792), Rolland Fuchs (618) and quarterback Scott Bull (533) did it in 1975.
Jefferson completed 67.3% of his passes to challenge Feleipe Franks' one-year-old school record of 68.5%, giving Briles the top two pass completion quarterbacks in Arkansas history. Jefferson will be the first returning starter at quarterback in Briles' career as an offensive coordinator.
Arkansas must replace ace wideout Treylon Burks, who caught 66 passes for 1,104 yards and 11 touchdowns as Jefferson's go-to target. Returners like Warren Thompson, Ketron Jackson Jr., Bryce Stephens and tight ends Trey Knox and Hudson Henry will be looking to move up the completions chart along with newcomers like Jadon Haselwood, Matt Landers, Isaiah Sategna and Quincey McAdoo.
Odom's defensive front, despite losing key personnel, had a big spring. Veterans like Zach Williams, Eric Gregory and Isaiah Nichols up front will pair with super senior linebacker Bumper Pool, transfer Drew Sanders and sophomore Chris Paul on the first two levels.
The return of junior safety Jalen Catalon, who had a breakout redshirt freshman year in 2020 with 99 tackles, adds further impact for a secondary that has a handful of players with starting experience like LaDarrius Bishop, Simeon Blair, Hudson Clark and Myles Slusher. Transfers like Dwight McGlothern and Latavious Brini pair with a rising talent pool in the defensive backfield for Odom and new cornerbacks Coach Dominique Bowman.
Fountain's special teams return kicker Cam Little and punter/holder Reid Bauer, who is expected to be pushed at the punter spot by Max Fletcher. The units do not return four-year deep snapper Jordan Silver.
The kick return game should be infused with fresh talent after a couple of lean years since Burks had a strong season returning punts as a freshman.