Three big questions facing the Hogs after Week One of spring practice

Spring football in Fayetteville’s supposed to be a time of optimism.

After a 2-10 season that sent Sam Pittman out the door, there’s nowhere to go but up for Arkansas.

New coach Ryan Silverfield opened the program’s 15-practice spring slate on March 15 — pushed indoors at Walker Pavilion by a bout of rain and winter weather — and what he found in the first two workouts didn’t answer much. It raised more questions than it settled.

That’s not a criticism. That’s football. The Razorbacks brought in 42 scholarship transfers, overhauled nearly everything from the position room labels to the practice structure, and they’re operating under a coaching staff that’s still installing its own identity.

The Red-White Game is set for April 25, and there’s a long stretch of summer camp still ahead.

After an opening week on the practice fields, three issues stand out as the biggest things Arkansas needs to figure out before the Hogs kick off the 2026 season against North Alabama on Sept. 5.

Who’s taking snap when it counts?

No question looms bigger for the Razorbacks this spring than the quarterback competition, and Silverfield isn’t trying to rush it.

He’s been clear from the start. Don’t expect a starter to be named after the spring game.

“I don’t sit here and say, ‘Hey, by the spring game, we’re going to announce a starter,'” Silverfield said. “Now, if someone has separated themselves [by a wide margin], maybe that’s a different story. But I believe this thing is going to go all the way through August, and that’s not a bad thing. I’ve dealt with that before.”

The main competitors are redshirt sophomore KJ Jackson — the only returning quarterback with Power Four experience — and redshirt freshman Memphis transfer AJ Hill, who followed Silverfield to Fayetteville.

Jackson, a 6-foot-4, 225-pound left-hander, started in the regular-season finale against Missouri last year.

He was 33 of 54 for 441 yards, three touchdowns and zero interceptions as a redshirt freshman in 2025.

Hill’s a different body type — 6-foot-6, 240 pounds 247Sports — and brings a big arm. He completed 19 of 32 passes for 223 yards with one touchdown and one interception at Memphis before redshirting.

Braeden Fuller, a redshirt senior transfer from Division II Angelo State, rounds out the group as a potential wild card.

Early spring workouts set the tone for how this thing’s going to unfold.

Jackson took the first-team reps in practice No. 1, then Hill moved into that slot in practice No. 2 for an alternating approach that Silverfield suggested could define the entire spring.

“What we’re going to decide at that position is almost alternating days,” Silverfield said.

What Silverfield’s looking for goes beyond pure arm talent.

“With all the quarterbacks, it’s who can communicate the best, who can put us in the best situation to run an effective and efficient offense,” he said. “It’s great if a guy’s got a rocket arm, right?

“We always say, ‘Oh, he’s got the best arm.’ That’s great, but if they can’t put us in the right protection, if they can’t communicate, if they can’t be a leader, I don’t care if they run with the third-team offense, if they can’t lead that group and command that group to do what they need to as an effective offense, that doesn’t matter.”

Offensive coordinator Tim Cramsey has echoed that theme.

“They know it’s a friendly but competitive situation in that room,” Cramsey said. “They’re talking to each other, helping each other out. They’re communicating with each other. They push each other. That’s kind of what it is.

“In the end, we’ve got to win, bottom line is the guy who gives us the best opportunity is the guy who’s going to play, and that decision is going to be made over a lot of spring, summer, and fall camp practices.”

The Hogs haven’t had to break in a new starting quarterback since the KJ Jefferson era ended after 2023.

Whoever wins this job will be the program’s third different starter since 2021. That’s not an easy assignment in the SEC, and the spring is barely a preview of what’s coming.

Can running back room become a strength?

The second major question facing Arkansas this spring involves the backfield, and it’s a good problem to have — if the coaches can sort it out.

For the second straight year, the Razorbacks’ leading rusher from the previous season won’t be around. Mike Washington ran for 1,070 yards in 2025 and declared for the NFL Draft.

His departure means the focus shifts to junior returnee Braylen Russell and a group of new arrivals led by Memphis transfer Sutton Smith.

Russell’s been the name Razorback fans have been waiting to break out for years. The Benton native’s career has been slowed by injuries, but new running backs coach David “YAC” Johnson — who came with Silverfield from Memphis — is already seeing a different version of the junior.

“He benefits by keeping him healthy and he’s able to move faster,” Johnson said of Russell’s conditioning work this offseason. “And it’s not just the weight. I think he’s changing his body. He made a conscious effort to do that. He’s been working extremely hard on that. He’s looking good, looking strong, looking a lot faster.”

Through two spring practices, Smith and Russell have gotten the bulk of the work with the top offense. Smith’s redshirt senior status and prior relationship with several of the new coaches has made him something of a guide for a room that’s still getting acquainted.

“It’s helped me develop my game, for sure,” Smith said. “And just being able to be a leader in the running back room and helping guys like Braylen and the younger guys understand the offense more has allowed us to flow better in practice and the film room.”

The depth behind those two isn’t bad either. There’s quickness with Markeylin Batton, versatile pass-catching options in Cam Settles and Jasper Parker, and freshman signee TJ Hodges also in the mix.

The early work in practice has included heavy emphasis on pass protection and the passing game — production through the air is expected to grow after a season when backs caught just 35 passes.

Silverfield’s been direct about the competition for carries.

“Sutton has a good understanding,” he said. “Now that does not mean that Sutton’s the starting running back. That means he’s going to have those opportunities, but he’s a pretty darn good running back.”

Can Silverfield build new culture fast enough?

The third and perhaps most layered question isn’t about a specific position — it’s about whether a program that went 2-10 last season can be rebuilt in one offseason.

Silverfield didn’t just inherit a bad record. He inherited a roster that’s been turned over almost entirely, a fan base that’s grown impatient and a new staff still learning each other.

The program begins its first set of drills under a new leader, marking a new chapter for the Razorbacks.

All 42 scholarship transfer additions are already enrolled and expected to participate in spring drills 247Sports — a number that dwarfs the 24 January transfers from a year ago.

Silverfield’s approach to practice is different from what Arkansas fans have seen. Special teams periods are now referred to as “special forces.”

Music plays during drills to help create energy while players rotate through competitive situations throughout practice.

The new coach made it clear he won’t be standing on one side of the field — “We bounce around, we move around,” Silverfield said. Sports Illustrated

He’s also rethinking how contact fits into spring workouts.

“Some questions have come up whether the quarterbacks will be live,” Silverfield said. “To be determined. But I think, ultimately, you still need to see: can guys block, can they still tackle, who can make people miss. All of those things are important.”

The opening practices showed some promise.

“I was pleased because every rep from the get-go, even the walk-through stuff with special teams was with a competitive mindset and the spirit of this group,” Silverfield said. “That’s not coach-speak. That’s something you’ve got to hang your hat on.”

KJ Jackson mirrored his coach’s tone.

“I had a lot of fun,” Jackson said. “There was a lot of energy, guys were flying around all over the place. And it was good to have the first day and the new offense, reading coverages, and working out with the boys. Day 1 was good.”

Silverfield’s focus on communication showed up in his message heading into practice No. 2.

“The communication needs to be better, because now there’s no, ‘Wait, what are we doing now? That horn blew, what are we doing?'” he said. “So now it needs to be a smoother transition and within those smoother transitions, the communication better uptick, right? The details, right? Because Day 1 sometimes guys are just flying off the ball to fly off the ball with excitement to go play ball and put the helmets on.”

None of this gets resolved before spring break.

There are 12 more practices to go before the Red-White Game wraps it all up on April 25, and the real test won’t come until the SEC schedule rolls around.

The first week gave Razorback fans something they haven’t had in a while — a new coaching voice, a new competitive environment and at least the early signs that things are being done differently in Fayetteville.

Whether that works out better is the question that still needs answering.