After missing a significant portion of his true freshman season due to injury, Arkansas tight end Luke Hasz is primed and ready to fully breakout for his sophomore year.
The Bixby, Oklahoma, native is fully participating in spring practice after breaking his clavicle in the Razorbacks' 34-22 loss to Texas A&M on Sept. 30.
Arkansas head coach Sam Pittman said there is "nothing holding" Hasz back, and he's ready to compete this spring.
"He said he feels 100% and he’s strong," Pittman said last Friday. "I think where he’s improved is his route running. He rounded some things off a year ago, I think he’s improved that.
"I really like what they did in (individuals), Coach Turner did a really good job in indy, they’re playing more physical. If you had a knock on Luke, it would be his run blocking, which I really didn’t. But, he’s gotten better there too. He’s playing with an extremely high amount of confidence."
While the injury was a major setback for Hasz, he said Tuesday there was a silver lining to it — it gave him the opportunity to grow as a person.
"It was obviously tough because I wasn’t able to be out there with my teammates," Hasz said of his injury on Tuesday. "But I’d say I’ve benefitted from it, maturing and becoming a man with my loved ones, my teammates. I took that perspective into my injury and I think it’s definitely going to elevate my game this year if something goes — not saying it is — but if something happens like that, I’ll be totally fine."
There are a lot of new parts in 2024 for the Razorbacks. When you factor in new Arkansas offensive coordinator Bobby Petrino, a new quarterback and new pieces on the offensive line, things will look different than they did a year ago. Hasz credited San Jose State transfer offensive lineman Fernando Carmona Jr. as a great addition.
"I’d say for me just being around (Carmona) for instance, a new offensive line and especially tackle, it’s just been a blessing," Hasz said. "And just the energy we have in practice has been a lot different than last year."
When it comes to Petrino, Hasz said all of the tight ends have taken really well to his coaching and he's helped bring out the best in them.
"It’s been really exciting just to learn from his perspective, what he’s going to do with the tight ends and just the offense in general," Hasz said. "Having (Var’keyes Gumms) back and Andreas (Paaske) coming is going to be really good for us. (Petrino has) been great and I think he’s going to be really good for us as tight ends and also for the team."
Last season, Hasz logged 16 receptions for 253 yards and three touchdowns. At the time, he was ranked No. 6 in the country for yards among tight ends.
This season, Hasz will be starting his sophomore campaign with a new quarterback under center. Arkansas head coach Sam Pittman said it's an open competition at for the starting job, but all signs right now point to Boise State transfer Taylen Green to take the job.
"I like just being able to hear him, not even, he’s obviously a leader in the field, but in the locker room he’s very vocal and we’re just talking about each other’s lives," Hasz said. "I just think his leadership is tremendous compared to any other quarterback that I’ve had. I just love everything about it."
The Razorbacks will continue their spring practices Thursday, leading up to the annual Red-White game on April 13.
