HawgBeat - Arkansas Football 2024 Spring Preview: Quarterback
HawgBeat previews the Arkansas Razorbacks quarterback room with spring practice starting Thursday.
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With Arkansas' spring football starting Thursday, HawgBeat continues its series of previewing positions for the 2024 Razorbacks.
Led by first-year offensive coordinator Bobby Petrino, the Arkansas quarterback room has a new look for the first time in while, which also means the first quarterback battle in a while.
The favorite entering spring practice is Boise State transfer Taylen Green, but redshirt senior Jacolby Criswell could be ready to prove he's a starter. Redshirt freshman Malachi Singleton and four-star freshman KJ Jackson are also in the mix, plus walk-on Austin Ledbetter got a mention from Pittman as an addition from the baseball team.
"But the quarterback battle, there’s basically five guys in there vying for that spot," Pittman said. "Obviously with Taylen and Malachi and Criswell … I like Ledbetter, I mean him coming over from baseball. He’s done a nice job of showing his leadership ability. Then I think we’ve got something special with KJ Jackson for our future. So we need to figure out all that kind of stuff. Excited to get going with that battle."
Pittman said the plan is to have a starter by the end of spring ball. The Hogs are planning to also open up three Saturday practices, including the April 13 spring game, to the public in an attempt to get the young quarterbacks in front of a live crowd.
"So part of the thinking with opening up the practices is because we are going to have some young kids and the quarterbacks, especially, besides Taylen, that haven’t played in front of people," Pittman said. "And hopefully it’ll kill two birds with one stone. We invite the state in to watch the kids play and then they’ll play in front of people and it might help them and we’ll be able to find out a little bit more about them."
We continue our spring positional previews with a look at Arkansas' tight ends, including stats, highlights, spring thoughts and expectations. HawgBeat was in attendance for Thursday's first practice of the spring, so this preview features intel from the live action:
Returning: Jacolby Criswell (Redshirt Senior), Malachi Singleton (Redshirt Freshman)
Newcomers: Taylen Green (Boise State transfer, Redshirt Junior), KJ Jackson (Freshman)
Walk-ons: Austin Ledbetter (Redshirt Freshman), Rykar Acebo (Redshirt Sophomore)
Taylen Green
Redshirt Junior / 6'6", 223 lbs./ Lewisville HS (TX) / Boise State
2023 Stats: 121 completions, 212 attempts, 1,752 passing yards, 14 passing touchdowns, 9 interceptions, 78 carries, 436 rushing yards, 9 rushing touchdowns
2023 PFF Grades: 614 snaps, 68.1 OFF, 60.2 PASS, 73.7 RUN
Spring Thoughts: It's no secret that Green has the upper hand on everyone else entering this spring. Not only does he have the size, speed and athleticism, but he just has the experience that will prove to be valuable.
With Petrino running the show, it can be easy to day dream about what could be if Green can really play at a high level. At Boise State, Green was a true dual-threat passer and he had a knack from getting outside of the pocket and making things happen — something Pittman begged for from his offense last year.
"That dude can move," defensive end Landon Jackson said Thursday. "He has a great arm, but I feel like he really can dominate you with running the ball. There were times where I had him out-leveraged whenever I was surfing. I had him out-leveraged, and he’ll still pull it and still get outside. When it comes down to it, if he really needs to, he’s going to use his speed and get those yards."
As much as I would love to see the Jacolby Criswell underdog story come true, Green just seems to have everything the Hogs could want in a starting quarterback. After watching Thursday's practice, I feel even more confident in saying that.
Green ran with the first team offense during all team periods of Thursday's practice. He's a physical presence at 6-foot-6, but he can also scoot.
Jacolby Criswell
Redshirt Senior / 6'1", 232 lbs./ Morrilton HS (AR) / North Carolina
2023 Stats: 17 completions, 27 attempts, 143 passing yards, 3 passing touchdowns, 23 carries, 44 rushing yards
2023 PFF Grades: 88 snaps, 56.7 OFF, 55.6 PASS, 58.4 RUN
Spring Thoughts: This is really Criswell's last chance to prove that he's ready to be a starter. He waited and waited at North Carolina behind two NFL quarterbacks in Sam Howell and Drake Maye. Then he came to Arkansas and waited behind KJ Jefferson during a 4-8 season.
Criswell has a chance to make what was likely a childhood dream come true by becoming QB1 for his home state Hogs. While he doesn't have the height advantage that Green has, Criswell has everything else. He can run 21-plus miles per hour, his arm is legit and he's been around college football for a while.
Arkansas brought Green in to be the starter, so that's got to make Criswell a little upset. He could go into the spring with a chip on his shoulder and end up as the starter by the time it's over and I wouldn't be shocked.
Criswell was the third team quarterback during Thursday's practice, which was honestly surprising to me. Singleton got the nod over him, and I have to say that Criswell did struggle throwing Thursday.
Malachi Singleton
Redshirt Freshman / 6'1", 225 lbs./ North Cobb HS (GA)
2023 Stats: N/A
2023 PFF Grades: N/A
Spring Thoughts: A former four-star prospect out of Kennesaw, Georgia, Singleton is a very gifted athlete at the quarterback position. He runs 22-plus miles per hour and he has a cannon for an arm.
Singleton was realistically never going to play last year with a third-year starter in Jefferson and more-than-capable backup in Criswell. But this year is a little bit different, and that was proven by him running as the second team quarterback Thursday.
I wouldn't be quick to count Singleton out of what seems to be just a two-man battle. He has all of the tools, he just lacks any experience.
KJ Jackson
Freshman / 6'4", 223 lbs./ St. James School (AL)
2023 Stats: N/A
2023 PFF Grades: N/A
Spring Thoughts: This spring will be a great opportunity for four-star freshman KJ Jackson to not only compete, but it will be a chance for him to get out of his comfort zone and grow exponentially. There are really no expectations for Jackson other than learning and picking things up at the rate they want him to.
It was fun to see a lefty quarterback throwing the ball around Thursday. Jackson seems to already be pretty comfortable, or at least he plays like it. He throws darts, but understandably struggles with accuracy.
Walk-ons
Austin Ledbetter: It wasn't super surprising to hear Pittman say he likes Ledbetter, who won three straight 7A state championships with the Bryant Hornets, including his senior season, when he threw for 3,086 yards with 41 touchdowns and 5 interceptions to win the 2020 Landers Award.
Ledbetter joined the football team after spending two seasons as a right-handed pitcher for the Razorback baseball team. Click here for an exclusive interview with Ledbetter.
Rykar Acebo: This will be the third season that Acebo will serve as a walk-on quarterback for the Razorbacks. He is a product of Jonesboro High School, where he threw for 3,508 yards and 39 touchdowns as a senior in 2021.
