Arkansas players to watch for in Liberty Bowl

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The Arkansas Razorbacks have had 25 players (scholarship and walk-on) enter the transfer portal since the beginning of the season. The Hogs also have three players who have already declared for the 2023 NFL Draft, leading to younger, less experienced players likely being called on for the Dec. 28 AutoZone Liberty Bowl matchup with Kansas.

Of those transfer players, seven were starters (at some point) this season — Trey Knox, Ketron Jackson Jr., Warren Thompson, Isaiah Nichols, Jalen Catalon, Myles Slusher and Reid Bauer. The three players that declared for the draft — Jadon Haselwood, Ricky Stromberg and Drew Sanders — were all difference makers, as well.

"Obviously you have a different team than what you had at the end of the year as we did — not as many — last year with (Treylon) Burks and (Tre) Williams and some of the guys that decided not to play in the game for good reasons," head coach Sam Pittman said Monday. "But oh yeah, I think the ones that we have out there are fired up and ready to go. Again, at some point, you want guys that want to be a Hog. The ones that want to that are out there at practice, they’re excited to be that way. I think we have enough talent to go and compete. And I believe that we’ll do that with all my heart. If you come to practice, I think you’ll see that."

The Liberty Bowl presents Arkansas and Pittman with an opportunity to get players on the field that didn't see much action throughout the regular season, but the older guys will also need to show out.

"I feel very strong that we'll have good representation, and we certainly need our older leadership," Pittman said. "We're going to use the next 10 or 12 practices to head start into next year as well."

Here are some names to watch for as the Hogs continue to prepare for the AutoZone Liberty Bowl, which is set to kickoff at 4:30 p.m. CT at Simmons Bank Liberty Stadium in Memphis on ESPN.

Paul earned his first career start in the regular season finale against Missouri on Nov. 25 and he recorded a career-high nine tackles and a tackle for loss.

In the 29-27 loss to the Tigers, Paul was working alongside Sanders in the absence of Bumper Pool, who had hip surgery and won't play another game in the Arkansas uniform. With Sanders declaring for the 2023 NFL Draft, Paul is now the top linebacker on the roster.

Paul is a very talented young linebacker and having the experience as the leader of the defense against Kansas will be very beneficial going into next season. After playing 334 snaps in the regular season, Paul should be ready for this opportunity.

"I think the Missouri game with me starting in that game and actually having a great game as well that just brought way more confidence to me," Paul said Saturday. "I know I can do this, I know my voice can be heard, I know I can check this and that and stuff like that. I feel like my confidence level Missouri game boosted it even more for me and that's going to translate over to Kansas."

Sategna's name came up quite a bit during fall camp, and Pittman talked very highly of him.

"The guy’s got great ball skills," Pittman said on Aug. 13. "He’s just a really good player. Sometimes if you’re not the biggest guy, you have to have special skills, and he has them. He can separate, really good hands. He doesn’t say a word now. He just comes to work everyday. I really like the kid, and I like him a lot. When he runs by people. I like him a little bit more. That’s what he has, he’s got super speed."

An ankle injury early in the season set Sategna back. The only time he saw the field on offense this season was on Oct. 29 against Auburn, when he played six snaps and caught one pass for 10 yards. He also played one special teams snap at BYU.

With two of Arkansas' starting pass catchers moving on — Jadon Haselwood (draft) and Ketron Jackson Jr. (transfer) — Sategna might be a beneficiary of the opportunity for play time. He was listed in the two-deep of Arkansas' depth chart for the Liberty Bowl.

Along the same lines of Paul needing to step up, true freshman Jordan Crook will be called on as well. With Pool out against Missouri, Crook was the only linebacker to see snaps outside of Paul and Sanders.

The 6-foot, 234-pound product of Duncanville, Texas, played just 54 snaps this season and tallied five tackles.

Crook saw a season-high 14 snaps against Auburn. He earned a 73.9 overall defensive grade from PFF in the game, which was the third highest mark on the team.

The Liberty Bowl presents a great opportunity for Crook to play legit snaps as a starter against a Power 5 opponent.

In the wake of starter Trey Knox hitting the transfer portal on Monday, Arkansas is looking at a mix of Hudson Henry, Nathan Bax and Ty Washington at tight end in this one. The pair of Henry and Bax combined to catch four passes for 19 yards this season.

Bax and Henry were the only names listed at tight end on the depth chart released Tuesday.

As a true freshman, Washington played on special teams in each of the first four games, and he will get a chance to play in the bowl without hurting his redshirt option.

"The NCAA passed a rule with Tyrus Washington to where your fifth game would not count towards your eligibility number," Pittman said Friday. "So he’ll be able to play. Which we were holding him at four, so he’ll be able to active and play as well. It’s a great rule, especially with the numbers are down probably for a lot of teams."

While most have focused on the tight ends that haven't made it to campus — 2023 recruits Luke Hasz and Shamar Easter — Washington is a talented player that is already on the team.

"I think he's a great player," Henry said of Washington. "He's going to be a great player here. I think he's what you call a true tight end. I think he's going to be really good in this bowl game and give flashes at what the next few years could look like."

It was an odd season for Wilson, who was thrown into the fire in a couple of big games.

In the absence of Thompson, Wilson played 25 snaps in the game against Alabama on Oct. 1. He was targeted three times in that game and dropped one pass.

The former 5.6 three-star prospect also saw 20 snaps in the win over BYU on Oct. 15. He caught his lone target for a 2-yard gain in that contest.

When Thompson quit the team prior to the Ole Miss game, Pittman said that Wilson would be the fifth receiver behind Haselwood, Landers, Jackson and Bryce Stephens. Wilson saw 15 snaps against Ole Miss, but did not play in the season finale at Missouri.

"Jaedon Wilson has come along, as well," quarterback KJ Jefferson said Saturday. "Just being able to learn from Matt (Landers) and those guys that were above him and Ketron (Jackson) and all those guys. Just being able to be in that room, learning. He’s waited for his opportunity, and now it’s here, and he’s taking advantage of it. He’s coming out each and every day to work. He’s asking questions more. He’s really involved in the offense and eager to learn and ready to go out there and be hungry and take advantage of his opportunity."

Wilson is listed as a starter for the Liberty Bowl alongside Bryce Stephens and Matt Landers.

With starting center Ricky Stromberg declaring for the NFL Draft, redshirt junior Beaux Limmer will get his shot at center. Limmer will shift from right guard to the middle, and Ty'Kieast Crawford will move to Limmer's guard spot.

Limmer said back in fall camp that he got over 10 to 20 live snaps in practices against the starting defense at center. He said Tuesday that he's enjoying being the full-time center now.

"I've enjoyed it actually," Limmer said. "I've been playing backup center all year behind (Stromberg). I enjoy playing guard, but kind of being the head guy in control and making calls, I kind of find that enjoyable. I've been enjoying it so far."

Pittman said he's talked to Limmer about playing center and how it can improve his draft stock.

"I think he needs a year, you know," Pittman said. "They keep about eight in the NFL, and if you can't play center and guard your value is going to go down. If you can, it's going to go up. Beaux's done a really nice job."

With Nichols hitting the transfer portal, the starting defensive tackle spot will be held by Ball against Kansas. He racked up 28 tackles and 1.5 tackles for loss this year.

"As far as (the Liberty Bowl), stepping up, my teammates need me more than ever now," Ball said Tuesday. "I would say I’m up to the challenge and I’m ready to go out there and showcase my talents."

Ball graded out nice (69.0 on defense) according to PFF and he played 264 snaps this season. He really came on late in the season and showed potential at the tackle position.

"I think Cam Ball will do great," Paul said Saturday. "Cam Ball is a great player. High energized and will run and give you his all every play. Even some time Cam Ball out there communicating with the d-line on where the checks and stuff like that should be. I'm very confident in Cam Ball. He made some great plays for us in the regular season. So I've got all my confidence in Cam Ball."

~ Sam Mbake, freshman WR

Chuck Barrett, the voice of Arkansas football, mentioned prior to the Missouri game that Mbake had seen practice reps with the first and second team offense leading up to the game, but he never saw the field with the offense.

Mbake played 65 snaps on special teams this year, but didn't get action on offense. He also transitioned to defensive back at one point before returning to the receiver room. With the lack of depth at receiver, Mbake will likely get some run in the bowl.

~ Jaylen Lewis, freshman DB

According to PFF, Lewis played just one defensive snap all season and that came in the season finale against Missouri. He saw 10 snaps on special teams, as well (one against Mississippi State, nine against BYU).

Lewis was a 5.7 three-star safety prospect out of Brownsville, Tennessee, and it looks like he might see his first meaningful snaps of the season against Kansas.

"J-Lew, I think he's going to play a lot in this bowl game," Pittman said Monday.

~ Bryce Stephens, redshirt freshman WR

Going into last season's Outback Bowl game against Penn State, Stephens was a name that Pittman wanted to see step up in the absence of Treylon Burks. He ended up having an underwhelming three catches for five yards in the contest.

Stephens showed flashes of his talent this year with a punt return for a touchdown against Missouri State and a 54-yard touchdown catch against Mississippi State. He is going to be a starter at receiver in the bowl.

"He’s played a lot of ball," Jefferson said Saturday. "Going out there, Bryce’s confidence level has risen through the roof on the offensive side of the ball, just getting him snaps early in the season. So, I feel really good about him."

~ Nico Davillier, freshman DT

Another name that Pittman spoke very highly of in fall camp is Davillier, who played on special teams in all 12 games this year. He also saw some run at defensive tackle in four games and recorded a QB hurry against Auburn.

The Hogs won't be as thin on the defensive line as they will be at other positions, but it will be interesting to see if Pittman tries to get a younger guy like Davillier some snaps on defense.

~ Max Fletcher, freshman punter

Bauer was the starting punter for Arkansas for most of the second half of the season until Pittman and his staff decided to bring Fletcher in for situational punting. With Bauer hitting the transfer portal, Fletcher will handle the punting duties by himself.

It wasn't a great season for the freshman from Melbourne, Australia, but he can make up for it with a nice showing in Memphis.

Mani Powell, freshman LB

Paul and Crook won't be able to do it all on their own. A native of Fayetteville, Powell is a young linebacker that has been praised for his size and strength.

Powell played in 10 games on special teams this year, seeing 82 total snaps.

When asked about linebackers that could step up in the bowl game, Pittman started with Powell's name.

"You know I think Mani Powell would be a guy, certainly," Pittman said Friday.

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