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HawgBeat is counting down the 10 most important Arkansas players for the upcoming 2021 season. Links to previous players in the list will be included below.

If we were ranking the top professional prospects on Arkansas’ roster, Jalen Catalon would likely be a couple of spots higher on this list. Alas, this is a look at the most important Razorbacks for the upcoming season - a list on which he also certainly belongs.

As a redshirt freshman, Catalon lived up to the hype the followed him from Mansfield, Texas, to Fayetteville. Had it not been for a torn ACL suffered in the first game of his senior year, he probably would have been ranked even higher than No. 243 in the Rivals250 for the Class of 2019.

Even with the injury, Catalon was still a highly touted signee in a class loaded with four-star talent for the Razorbacks. He appeared in only four games in 2019, though, and most of his action came in meaningless snaps.

However, he did get an extended run against Western Kentucky and gave a glimpse of what was to come, earning an 85.9 Pro Football Focus grade on 29 defensive snaps.

Last season, Catalon was one of the top safeties in the SEC. Despite a couple of questionable targeting ejections, he still finished the season with 99 tackles, four pass breakups and three interceptions, which earned him a 79.4 PFF grade.

He also developed a reputation as one of the hardest hitters in the country. Some have even already started drawing comparisons between him and Arkansas legends Steve Atwater and Ken Hamlin.

The only reason he isn’t higher on this list is because of the depth in the Razorbacks’ secondary. If Catalon goes down with an injury - or gets ejected again - there are at least some talented players waiting in the wings to fill in.

There would obviously be a drop off because Catalon is getting some preseason All-America accolades, but it wouldn’t be quite as drastic at it would be for the players listed ahead of him on our countdown.

10. Montaric Brown - CB
9. Ricky Stromberg - C
8. Trelon Smith - RB
7. Bumper Pool - LB
6. Dorian Gerald - DE
5. Myron Cunningham - LT
4. Jalen Catalon - S
3. TBA
2. TBA
1. TBA