Starting spots along Arkansas' front trench may still be up in the air, according to offensive line coach Eric Mateos, but transfer tackles Fernando Carmona Jr. and Keyshawn Blackstock have garnered high remarks throughout fall camp for bringing unique edges to their unit.
Nicknamed "Junior," Carmona was an Honorable Mention All-Mountain West left tackle in 2023 after starting all 12 regular season games for San Jose State and finishing with an 81.5 Pro Football Focus grade.
Blackstock only made four appearances for Michigan State last year, but was ranked as the No. 4 overall junior college prospect out of Coffeyville Community College in the class of 2023.
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Set to carry the ball behind the offensive tackle duo is former Utah transfer running back Ja'Quinden Jackson, who said Friday that the pair will be "the heads of that front line."
"We got some dogs at them tackles," Jackson said. "54 (Blackstock) and 55 (Carmona), some dogs at them tackles. The way they communicate, the way they communicate and they carry themselves on and off the field, we're gonna be better than last year."
New players for an offensive line that allowed 3.92 sacks per game in 2023 (126th in the nation), Carmona and Blackstock aren't "dogs", but "Hogs," according to Mateos. They'll need to keep that reputation if Arkansas hopes to flip its fortune over the coming months.
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"That's what they are," Mateos said. "They're hogs. And so, um, these guys have done a nice job. Both of them, um, both of them have their fleas just like every alignment has, and we talk a lot in our room that every player has an edge.
"Keyshawn is a little bit stiff. "He's a little bit stiffer than you'd want an alignment to, but he's got unbelievable feet, unbelievable speed, and unbelievable hands. So, is he the smoothest mover? No. But he's extremely twitchy and fast. Whereas [Fernando] is a little more smooth. And I wish that he had a little bit more, like, smoothness to him or he has a little more twitch, and I wish he was a little smoother at times."
Chemistry — or lack thereof — plagued the Razorbacks' offensive line last season, but that issue seems to have been resolved thanks to the welcoming nature of returners and the willingness all-around to improve in the opinion of Carmona.
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"I'm coming in, and these guys have to be open with open arms," Carmona said. "And guys like (Josh) Braun, Ty'Kieast (Crawford), Amaury (Wiggins), (E'Marion) Harris, they were all willing to just open up their hearts to us and be like, 'I want to learn, want to I want to be led.'
"And, you know, those guys, it's tough because I'm coming from a school like San Jose where I'm playing in the Mountain West, the level is not the same. They could easily just not have the respect for me, but, you know, they opened up their arms, they opened up their hearts, and I'm forever grateful for that."
Arkansas continues to roll through fall camp ahead of the Thursday, Aug. 29, season-opener against UAPB at War Memorial Stadium in Little Rock.
