It's impossible to look back at the history of Arkansas Razorbacks football and not see Ryan Mallett.
A record-setter in every sense of the word, Mallett spent two seasons at Arkansas from 2009 to 2010. In that timeframe, the Hogs won 19 games and earned their first and only berth in a BCS bowl game with the 2011 Sugar Bowl.
Mallett's 3,869 yards and 32 touchdowns he threw in 2010 is still a program record to this day, and he had four games in his career where he threw five touchdown passes a piece, which is tied for fourth-most in program history.
That said, Mallett was blessed with a bevy of incredible receivers to catch those passes, with names like Joe Adams, Cobi Hamilton, Greg Childs, D.J. Williams and others taking the field alongside him.
Another one of those names is Jarius Wright, who played at Arkansas from 2008 to 2011. After his and Mallett's NFL careers were over, they teamed up at White Hall High School in the coaching ranks.
Mallett tragically passed away two years ago Friday from a drowning accident at a beach in Florida. He left behind a family, friends, and a legacy that will never be forgotten.
Wright sat down with HawgBeat to recount Mallett's legacy and relive some of the moments the two shared. But the first thing he talked to HawgBeat about wasn't the 6-foot-6 gunslinger's performance on the field. It was who he was off of it.
“I mean, his character just spewed out of him,” Wright said. “He was always a happy guy, always energetic, always just excited to be doing anything. You could be playing tic-tac-toe, and he would be excited to be there playing tic-tac-toe with you. He would do most of the talking, I’m not much of a talker so he kind of understood that.”
Like Mallett, Wright is also in the Arkansas football record books and is the current leader in career reception yards (2,934) as well as most touchdowns in a single season (12).
Mallett's loose nature stood in stark contrast to that of his head coach, Bobby Petrino. The Head Hog was known for his strict personality and attention to detail that pushed the Hogs into the upper echelon of college football. Wright said the two contrasting personalities formed a unique bond.
“I would say it was a love-hate relationship, on both hands of it,” Wright said. “You know, Ryan needed Bobby, and Bobby needed Ryan. And I know that sounds crazy, but Ryan made Bobby kind of loosen up, but then Bobby also made Ryan kind of tighten up a little bit. And they both needed that aspect.
"Not only in that aspect, but Bobby’s offense and what Bobby wanted to do, Ryan could do it. And I think that added another aspect to that relationship."
That connection between Petrino and Mallett also gave way to some incredible moments on the field. Hearing commentators say "touchdown Arkansas" was commonplace, and Wright recounted one of those moments against Mississippi State in 2010.
Ryan Mallett to Jarius Wright for 89-yard touchdown vs. Mississippi State
At the time, Arkansas was 8-2 and headed into Starkville with two games left on the schedule — that week against the Bulldogs and the final game of the season against LSU.
In that contest, Arkansas took home a 38-31 victory in double overtime and Mallett threw for 305 yards and three touchdowns. 89 of those passing yards came on a throw from Mallett to Wright that is still the fourth-longest pass play in Arkansas history.
“I remember it just like it was yesterday,” Wright said. “It was a play we practiced all week. We kind of expected to, not come up that clean, but it was just a little play-action fake off one of the run plays we had been running all night. And Knile (Davis), he was having a really good game that night also.
"So Mallett went down on the play fake, raised back up, and I’m running down the middle of the field wide open. I know in my head, I’m thinking, 'just don’t drop the ball,' because I know Mallett’s going to get me the ball.
"There was no doubt in my mind that Mallett was going to make the perfect throw. There’s not too many throws that he did not make that was perfect. So I knew he was going to make the perfect throw, the ball goes in the air, I catch it and I go to turn up field and I start to trip on my own feet.
"So I catch my balance, and I look up, I see Joe (Adams) running to get a block for me so I kind of fall in behind him. One guy dove at my feet and I just remember scoring and Joe just talking all kinds of trash to the Mississippi State guys."
Wright's view of the throw to Cobi Hamilton vs. LSU in 2010
Just one week later, the Hogs were in Little Rock for the final game of the regular season against LSU. Arkansas came in ranked No. 12 while LSU was No. 5. Though it wasn't written in stone, a trip to the Sugar Bowl was on the line.
Right before halftime, Petrino dialed up a play that lives in Arkansas football history to this day. Rather than taking a knee with seconds left, he opted to pass the ball and fireworks ensued.
Wright was on the field for that play, and recounted what he remembered from it.
“I remember getting into the huddle and we’re looking over, because there was a break in play," Wright said. "We get on the field and Bobby calls a play and we all look at each other like ‘what is he doing? We’re playing LSU, we don’t want to make a mistake at this point in the game.’
"It was Z-topper post to Cobi, and I was on the back side, and I run my route, and I look back and I see the ball on the way, and it’s on a line, and I’m like ‘oh, Cobi is about to get his head taken off,’ that’s my first thought. But you see Cobi kind of work back a bit towards the ball and then he catches it. Next thing you know, the two LSU guys hit each other and then it’s like ‘Oh crap, it’s on.’
"He caught it, and he’s running, and then I run down to basically just make sure Patrick Peterson doesn’t make a play to spoil the fun. I’d say that was one of the top five plays I was a part of."
Mallett takes over as head coach at White Hall
Mallett enjoyed a seven-year NFL career that included stints with the New England Patriots, which drafted him in the third round of the 2011 NFL Draft, the Baltimore Ravens and Houston Texans. He appeared in 21 games and started eight of those.His mother, Debbie, told HawgBeat in a separate interview that he wanted to get into coaching after his playing career ended. It was the family business for Ryan, and he got his start as the offensive coordinator at Mountain Home for two years before he took the reins of the White Hall program.
Wright joined Mallett's coaching staff at White Hall as the offensive coordinator, and he said he saw Mallett, in some ways, turn into his former head coach once he took the reins.
“It’s funny, he became Bobby Petrino,” Wright said. “Of course without some of the words that he used, don’t get me wrong, it’s high school kids, so it’s having more fun and things like that. But he coached the kids, he coached those kids hard. He held the kids accountable. Just all the stuff that coaches don’t want to do in the high school level, Ryan took pride in it and was set on changing the program."
Mallett's loyalty stuck out the most to Wright
HawgBeat asked Wright if he could describe Mallett in one word. Wright said there were so many that were flooding through his mind, but the one that stuck out the most was "loyal."
“He was not only a loyal teammate, but he was a loyal friend," Wright said. "Anything you ever needed from him, or anything that he could ever do for you, he wanted to do it. He would never hesitate to do it.
“Our relationship through the NFL of course wasn’t as close as we were in college or even after the NFL, but it’s like we never missed a beat. And I just think it takes loyal and genuine people like Ryan Mallett to be able to have those type of relationships."
