What are your thoughts on the coming year/predictions for the season? - @Jegreenwood
Nikki: First off, I'm assuming everything gets played as planned (with or without fans). I think Arkansas has a large capacity for growth in Sam Pittman's first year. The amount of young players that gained experience last season (albeit painful experience) is going to make things a lot smoother for Pittman and his coordinators.
Kendal Briles' system sounds easier to grasp, so the burden falls on execution, and with an SEC-experienced QB like Feleipe Franks leading, returning Rakeem Boyd, a more experienced offensive line, continuity with wide receivers (and their coach), etc, etc, I expect a pretty big jump for the Razorbacks offense. Enough of a jump to at least make the Hogs competitive against the non-top 25 teams on their schedule (unfortunately there are a lot of those). The defense is having to replace three really key starters (Agim, Harris, Curl) but Barry Odom's scheme has proven successful elsewhere and the group should have more faith in the former head coach than they did in John Chavis. Another big element is special teams. Having a position coach dedicated to special teams, and one with the resume of Scott Fountain's, should set them up for more success in that area.
I'm confident Arkansas has the tools to beat an SEC team this season but still can't feel comfortable predicting anything more than 5 wins. Four is my safe bet.
You put a CB in for Keuan Parker. Is he looking to make a decision soon and what caused you to put that in? - @DaltonG
Nikki: Glad that pick didn't go over everybody's heads. I feel really good about Keuan Parker to Arkansas. I know he's coming down to a decision relatively soon and Arkansas has way more momentum with him than any other program in his top six (Baylor, Nebraska, Michigan State, Kansas, SMU). Arkansas was his last visit before the dead period was reenacted and Fayetteville is closer to home than any of his other top choices.
Has Pittman having two first round draft picks had a positive effect on Oline recruiting? I feel like the rich are getting richer right now during the pandemic. Arkansas is a place recruits have to come see, especially coming off the last three seasons. - @ARazorbacks90
Nikki: Sam Pittman's name with offensive line recruit already holds so much weight but it certainly doesn't hurt to have a few more tacked on to the resume. It proves that it genuinely is the development Pittman's provided them that got them to that level, not just their own ability–and if he can do that at Georgia, he can do that at Arkansas. And he's not alone, his own offensive line coach has first-hand experience with what Pittman can do and Davis has built a small reputation of his own. Without Pittman and Davis, I don't believe Arkansas would've gotten any of the three signees that they got in 2020.
The rich most certainly are getting richer during this time but it almost kind of helps Arkansas in a way? Hear me out. Instead of wasting months recruiting kids that were probably out of your reach anyways, you can now focus on more realistic options and you don't have to wait for the couple months leading up to signing day to do it. I can honestly say not many of the guys that came off the board over the past few weeks really would've changed their mind if they took a visit here as most of them visited their school of choice several times over the past couple years.
It will be very important to go full throttle on visits once they're allowed again. If you're targeting kids with other P5 offers, like you should, it's unlikely that they pick Arkansas in the shape that it's currently in if they've visited their other options. They have to gain a sense of home that a virtual tour cannot provide.
Any word of Heston K and Casey M returning on their new eligibility? - @BKThomas1990
Nikki: I'd have to defer to Hutch on this one but I'm pretty positive neither are planning to return to the UA and they'll both be drafted quickly.
Let's say hypothetically that Isaiah Joe returns, Frank Anselem commits to Arkansas, and the other transfers with us in their top options commit to Arkansas as well. How is that going to work? - @Hudson McCarty
Nikki: I get questions like this all the time but it's just not realistic. Besides the occasional uninformed football recruit, prospects don't just commit out of the blue–programs know who is going to commit and when, and they essentially control it. If, for instance, Frank Anselem called up Eric Musselman and said, "Hey coach, I want to be a Razorback," but Musselman doesn't have the spot, then he simply tells him it's not possible at this time and asks him to hold off if he can. Even if a prospect chose to commit, the staff still has to send them scholarship paperwork and if there's no scholarship available, they can't do that. If someone was to commit, we'd know it's because the staff knows someone else is going to decide to transfer and they just haven't made it public yet.
Which 2021 5 star basketball offers do you see the hogs having a legit shot with? And out of them who is the most likely? - @UkHawg
Nikki: Arkansas has offered seven 5-stars in the 2021 class with two already having cut them from contention. Out of all the virtual visits the Hogs have done so far, they've done them with with two 5-stars Peyton Watson and Kendall Brown, indicating to me that they don't have much of a shot with the other three (Moussa Diabate, Chet Holmgren, Michael Foster). The Hogs are still getting to know these prospects and gauging mutual interest so I don't expect any commitments any time soon.
Who are our legit options on the defensive line? - @DaltonG
Nikki: I wrote a good story about this the other day when projecting the number of spots for each position and who could fill them (read here), but Arkansas doesn't have a huge need for defensive ends in this class and really just need some depth at defensive tackle. You mentioned Cameron Ball in your question–he is indeed up there for the Hogs but hasn't visited yet and he's being recruited by various schools for different sides of the ball. Does he have a preference and does that help or hinder Arkansas for the Georgia native?
They've offered three JUCO defensive tackles, including one from Rion Rhoades' former program Hutchinson C.C., but I couldn't say at this point who they have a strong chance with in the JUCO ranks as no one has visited. You also mentioned Tobechi Okoli, one of Jermaine Hamilton-Jordan's teammates, I think he's a solid target but he's also got a wide variety of options including Iowa State, Nebraska, Oklahoma and more. LeBlanc has continued sending out offers so I assume he's not done searching for the right guys yet.
Why would people pay for a subscription to a sports blog, when the news comes out on transfers and signings anyway? - @BenFayetteville
Nikki: I understand not wanting to pay for a subscription if you're a casual fan (I wouldn't call HawgBeat or 247 or ADG blogs btw), but for one, you get direct access to the journalists who are out at practice everyday. You could DM me questions but you may not get an answer back–that's not the case if you're a subscriber. Also, getting news stories after the news has broken is good.... but you'll never get the whole story that way. If you're a recruiting buff, you know the ebbs and flows of recruiting change daily and many people enjoy following the process because it tells a lot more about the health of a program than just tuning in to signing day.
Frozen Margaritas or on the rocks? Street tacos or Tex-Mex tacos? Corona or Modelo? - @Timothy_Heilman
Nikki: On the rocks with salt, 100% of the time (I've got sensitive af teeth). Street tacos–but all tacos will do. Corona > Modelo but I know most beer connoisseurs wouldn't agree with me.
You also asked me about top priorities for the 2021 class, I wrote about this month and made it premium. I'll make it free for you now.
Do you like Mike and Ike’s? - @Jegreenwood
Nikki: I'm more of a Hot Tamales gal and even if I'm looking for a fruit-flavored type candy I'm going to go with Sour Patch Kids or Starbursts or Skittles. Hard pass on the Mike n Ikes. They always remind me of this:
