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FAYETTEVILLE — In an era of opt outs, it sounds like Arkansas will have pretty much a full roster when it takes on TCU in next week’s Texas Bowl.
During a Zoom video conference with local media Monday afternoon, head coach Sam Pittman said he doesn’t anticipate any of his players deciding to skip the Razorbacks’ first bowl game in four years.
“Sometimes I say something here and then 15 minutes later it changed,” Pittman said. “But I have no indication that anybody's not excited to go to the game and that our entire football team will go there and play the game.”
The player with the most speculation surrounding his status for the bowl game has been quarterback Feleipe Franks. With him dealing with a rib injury that forced him to miss the Missouri game and limited him in the finale against Alabama, many wondered if Franks might shift his focus to the NFL Draft.
However, Pittman said Monday that he’s healthy and “ready to play” against the Horned Frogs on New Year’s Eve.
Franks has completed 68.5 percent of his passes this season - which would break Kevin Scanlon’s 41-year-old single-season record of 66.2 percent - and was recently named one of 14 semifinalists for Mayo Clinic Comeback Player of the Year Award.
“I'm really proud of him and what he's done,” Pittman said. “To come over here and believe in us and choose us, and do what he's done as a captain, just a really great year for him, our team, and for my future, that I was able to meet a guy like him."
Several other Razorbacks have also been banged up, including linebacker Grant Morgan (knee), tight end Hudson Henry (undisclosed), safety Myles Slusher (undisclosed), quarterback KJ Jefferson (knee), center Ricky Stromberg (concussion) and offensive lineman Noah Gatlin (concussion).
Asked about their availability for the bowl game, Pittman didn’t go into specifics on any of them, but indicated they should be good to go next week.
“Just simple as I can say it, we're healthy,” Pittman said. “Gatlin is still a question mark. I think everybody else, unless they got hurt for the season, will be available for the bowl.”
It was also revealed Monday that true freshman Marcus Henderson, who has played tight end and offensive line this year, had also been injured, but he’s back and ready to go. He did not dress out the final four games of the regular season.
Defensive end Julius Coates missed the Alabama game for non-injury reasons and “will be out for the bowl,” Pittman said, but his status beyond that is unknown.
The Texas Bowl is scheduled to kick off at 8 p.m. CT on Dec. 31 and it’ll be televised on ESPN.