Pittman considering changes to offensive line
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FAYETTEVILLE — Coming off its first loss of the season, Arkansas will look at some possible changes to its offensive line ahead of Saturday’s game at No. 17 Ole Miss.
Backup tackles Jalen St. John and Ty’Kieast Crawford will move inside and get a look at the Razorbacks’ two guard spots in practice this week, head coach Sam Pittman told reporters Monday.
“We’re going to get some guys to challenge inside at the guard spot, to see if we can’t get a little heavier, a little more physical in there,” Pittman said. “We’ll give St. John and Crawford some chances to go in there and play a little bit.”
The news comes just a few days after the second-year coach admitted his team was “dominated” and “whipped” in the trenches, on both sides of the ball, in a 37-0 shutout loss to No. 2 Georgia.
That includes the offensive line, as Arkansas posted sub-50 grades in pass- and run-blocking, according to Pro Football Focus. Despite having the fourth-best run-blocking grade in the FBS through four weeks, the Razorbacks earned an all-time (since 2014) low mark of 46.6.
Outside of left tackle Myron Cunningham, who earned a 64.8 grade, none of Arkansas’ linemen graded out particularly well against the Bulldogs. Starting left guard Brady Latham and right guard Beaux Limmer posted grades of 51.3 and 57.5, respectively, while backup Ty Clary earned a 50.9 mark on 18 snaps rotating with Limmer.
Part of that had to do with Georgia’s ultra-talented front seven, which is littered with future NFL players, but Pittman is considering everything in the wake of that performance.
“I think every week you look at your personnel,” Pittman said. “You certainly want to get the best players you can on the field. … We’re not firing people because of that game, but we’re always looking to try to get better.”
Although Luke Jones is listed as Latham’s backup, St. John actually played eight snaps at left guard against Georgia. He had previously played 13 snaps at left tackle in mop-up duty against Georgia Southern.
St. John is a 6-foot-5, 330-pound lineman from St. Louis who flipped from Missouri to Arkansas after Pittman was hired and brought former Missouri head coach Barry Odom and offensive line coach Brad Davis to his staff. He was the first four-star offensive lineman signed by the Razorbacks since Pittman’s tenure as an assistant.
Arkansas added another four-star lineman this offseason via the portal, as Crawford transferred in from Charlotte. The 6-foot-5, 350-pounder actually committed to the Razorbacks as part of the 2020 class, but decommitted and was heading for a JUCO until becoming a late qualifier and signing with the 49ers.
Much like St. John, Crawford’s experience so far has been at tackle. In addition to 13 snaps at the position against Georgia Southern, he also played 151 snaps at right tackle as a true freshman at Charlotte.
“St. John played…some during the game at guard and he’s just a bigger, more physical guy,” Pittman said. “Not saying he’s better, but I think those two guys we’re going to move inside and see if there’s an opportunity for them to play for us.”
If a change is made, it wouldn’t be the first time Pittman has made such a move. A similar situation unfolded in 2013, when he was the offensive line coach and shifted Dan Skipper and Denver Kirkland from backup tackles to starting guards in the fifth game of the season.
The Razorbacks are heading into their sixth game of 2021 this weekend, with kickoff against the Rebels scheduled for 11 a.m. CT Saturday on ESPN.