We continue our HawgBeat position preview series ahead of the start of fall camp with the tight ends. The group is led by first year position coach Morgan Turner, who came over from Stanford during the offseason following the departure of Dowell Loggains to South Carolina.
Gone is former starter Trey Knox, who followed Loggains to South Carolina. The Razorbacks reloaded, though, and they plan to utilize the tight end position much more with new offensive coordinator Dan Enos running the show rather than Kendal Briles, who left for the same position at TCU.
Here is a full preview of the tight ends position for Arkansas ahead of fall camp, including a breakdown of each guy and how we project the depth chart to look...
Arkansas Tight Ends
Returning players: Nathan Bax (super senior), Ty Washington (redshirt freshman), Hunter Talley (redshirt freshman - walk-on),
Additions: Francis Sherman (senior), Var'keyes Gumms (redshirt sophomore), Luke Hasz (freshman), Shamar Easter (freshman), Luke Johnston (freshman - walk-on)
The Starter
The starter at tight end is tricky, because it really depends on the personnel package. If the team is running 11 personnel with just one tight end on the field, it would likely be Nathan Bax to begin fall camp.
A super senior from Jefferson City, Missouri, Bax played in 11 games for Arkansas during the 2022 season. He caught just three passes for 16 yards on the year, but he played 212 total snaps.
Don't expect Bax to catch many passes in 2023, though his number should be up from three receptions. If the team moves to 12 or even 13 personnel, Bax is more than likely going to be blocking and not running routes.
During the 2022 season, Bax recorded a 58.0 run block grade from Pro Football Focus. He also contributed a bit in pass blocking and earned a 75.7 grade in that category.
The Rest
After Bax seems to be North Texas transfer Var'keyes Gumms. As a redshirt freshman in 2022, Gumms was named a Second-Team Freshman All-American by The Athletic after he caught 34 passes for 458 yards and five scores.Gumms broke the North Texas single school records for receptions and receiving yards by a tight end and his five touchdowns rank second in a single season in program history.
The other transfer addition was Francis Sherman from Louisville. The 6-foot-3, 234-pound native of Bay Village, Ohio, caught one pass for 13 yards in 2022 and he will likely be in the same boat as Bax this season. Don't expect Sherman to catch many passes, but he can be a very valuable blocker.
Redshirt freshman Ty Washington is sort of a wild card at the moment with all of the new additions. He caught his first and only pass of the season on a 17-yard touchdown during the Liberty Bowl against Kansas. A former three-star prospect out of Leesburg, Georgia, Washington could turn out to a diamond in the rough.
The two freshmen additions are four-stars Luke Hasz and Shamar Easter.
Hasz enrolled early and was as impressive as any freshman during spring practices. He's a very talented route runner and he made some catches that just didn't feel like it was a freshman on the field.
Easter is another wild card at the moment, as his high school numbers don't pop off the page, but he could thrive if put in the right position to succeed.
Things To Watch
Who will lead tight ends in receiving?
As of now, Gumms seems like the top candidate to lead the team in receiving yards. His college experience gives him the edge, though Hasz seems like he could turn into a star.
As previously mentioned, Washington could end up playing a significant role, and fall camp should really give a good gauge of where things stand.
Will either of the freshman play often?
I think Hasz could end up playing quite a bit, but the additions of Gumms and Sherman made that a little tougher. To me, those two additions just proved that the Razorbacks plan to run more two tight end sets than maybe expected.
Can a tight end lead the team in receiving TDs?
With the three transfer additions at wide receiver, things are wide open for a go-to target to emerge for KJ Jefferson. I really thought Knox was going to play that role in the red zone last season, but it just never happened. Maybe Gumms can be that guy for Jefferson this fall?
Projected Depth Chart
Projected Depth Chart - Tight End| Beginning of Fall Camp | Week 1 |
|---|---|
| Nathan Bax | Var'Keyes Gumms |
| Var'Keyes Gumms | Nathan Bax |
| Tyrus Washington | Luke Hasz |
| Luke Hasz | Tyrus Washington |
| Francis Sherman | Francis Sherman |
| Shamar Easter | Shamar Easter |
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