The addition of cornerback Jaheim Singletary from Georgia prior to the 2023 season sent waves throughout the Arkansas fanbase, but the former five-star recruit didn't quite live up to the hype during his first season in Fayetteville.
As a redshirt freshman last fall, Singletary appeared in 10 games and started four. He logged 17 total tackles and four pass breakups across 338 total snaps during his season season of college football.
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Coming out of Riverside High School in Jacksonville, Florida, Singletary was the No. 10 overall player in the 2022 recruiting class on Rivals. After not playing much as a freshman at Georgia, he hit the portal and joined the Razorbacks during the 2023 summer.
"We were trying summertime, like, hey, let's build this relationship," secondary coach Deron Wilson said Monday. "Now, he understands expectations. He's another guy. These first 5 days, you look at Singletary and he is who we thought he was coming out of high school. He's been having a really good camp as well."
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Despite the late arrival, Singletary gained his first career start in the season-opener against Western Carolina last season and he picked up six tackles and half a tackle for loss in the contest. His best coverage game was when he broke up two passes against BYU on Sept. 16.
According to Pro Football Focus, Singletary posted a 54.5 coverage grade across 165 total snaps in coverage. Click here for details on how many catches and touchdowns he allowed.
The 6-foot-2, 187-pound corner put together a solid spring, and he's been one of the team's more successful coverage corners through the first five days of fall camp.
"Just the learning of the game, understanding," Singletary said of what he's improved on. "As much time as we put in on the field, you’ve got to do the same off the field. Film study, getting in the training room. Just a lot."
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Arkansas returns a starter in Jaylon Braxton at cornerback, plus sixth-year senior and former TCU transfer Kee'yon Stewart looks like a renewed player, as he's been the other first team cornerback in fall camp. Singletary is right behind, though, and he's playing with some extra motivation from last season.
"It’s a lot of motivation, but I think with that going on, it’s a lot of lessons through it," Singletary said. "So like, battled a lot. It really wasn’t a bad thing for me. I think it was a good thing for me, from the lessons learned and then just helping me get comfortable with the game itself."
Arkansas will continue with practice No. 6 of fall camp Tuesday in preparation for the season opener Thursday, Aug. 29, against UAPB at War Memorial Stadium in Little Rock. The game will begin at 6:30 p.m. CT and it will be televised on ESPNU.
