Sam Pittman and the Arkansas staff landed a priority target on Tuesday night from three-star OT Cole Carson out of Rivercrest (Texas) HS. Carson was a diamond in the rough that Pittman stumbled upon and his offer sheet has since blown up accordingly.
Sam Spiegelman - Rivals Mid-South Analyst
Carson is the second offensive lineman in the Razorbacks' 2021 class and the first from Texas. Of course, the Lone Star State is a significant recruiting ground for Arkansas and Rivercrest HS (Bogata, Texas) is a small corner of East Texas that Pittman and his staff are taking advantage of.
Carson previously visited The Hill in March -- right before the CoVid19-inspired dead period -- giving Arkansas a lofty edge in landing a commitment a little more than a month later. Auburn, Baylor, Ole Miss, TCU, Texas Tech were all involved here, but Arkansas' early overture paired with a junior day visit loomed especially large here.
Carson was given an initial 5.7 three-star grade at offensive tackle a few months ago and certainly fits among the nation's best at the position.From a physical standpoint, Carson boasts a 6-foot-6, 285-pound frame. He's long and thin with room to pack on some weight. He'll be a candidate to benefit from an SEC weight room as he grows into the right tackle position.
Speaking of which, Carson lines up primarily as a RT and also sees snaps inside at guard. Because of his frame, his length and his ability to pass protect, Carson projects as an OT and a key cog toward Pittman's roster overhaul in the trenches.
Where is Carson as a prospect right now -- it's fair to label him as a RT due to his run-blocking prowess. He's a force in the run game and moves defenders off the ball with ease. His presence goes a long way in establishing a power run game. He's still raw in pass protection but combines a lot of his endearing run-blocking technique to his pass blocking, which ultimately proves effective.
Carson's offense hinges largely on the run game, so there is only limited action in pass pro. While he's nimble, this is the biggest question mark in his game to date -- how he'll handle elite edge-rushers on a consistent basis.
Carson packs a powerful initial punch that is wildly effective. He's quick out of the break, tends to play low and explodes out of his stance. Carson plays with an aggressive chip on his shoulder and, at times, has the potential to block multiple levels of defenders. That's an area of his game that could improve as we examine his ranking from a national perspective.
Carson is a nimble OL with massive raw strength and is always looking to put a defender on their backside. He does not consistently extend his arms while blocking and, at times, struggles to block in space. Those are two areas of his game to monitor as he braces for his senior season.
Jeff Savage - Former DI offensive lineman
Carson's 13 P5 offers, without receiving another, would be 4th on the team when he reports next year, only behind Marcus Henderson (22), Ray Curry Jr. (20), and Jalen St. John (16). Which would mean the most sought-after players in that room are all Brad Davis/Sam Pittman guys.
I’ll admit he might be the hardest eval/breakdown I’ve done and a player that I just really, really like. His impact when he reports has a chance to be solid in year two and maybe even year one. He’s got a nice natural bend and for 6’5”-6’6” actually plays with really good pad level which is a rarity in most high school offensive linemen (even the great ones). That indicates flexibility in his knees, hips, and ankles and he should be able to add to his frame once he gets on campus.
He brings a lot of pop in his hands, meaning he strikes with his hands vs his shoulders or forearms and gets movement, which is great! He seems to redirect well and does track to the second level on film. His bend and physicality could allow him to fit in as a tackle or guard and probably either side.
One of my favorite things about him is how intelligent the kid really is. Drawing scholarship offers from Dartmouth, Penn, Vanderbilt, and Duke are just as impressive as any other in that regard. That translates on the football field to understanding schemes, defensive fronts, how coverage rotations effect possible pressures, and overall player and team tendencies.
The issue I expect out of him early is pass protection, specifically being on an island in one on one pass pro vs SEC DE’s. Right now, he hasn’t had that and without camps this spring and summer and his high school seeming to be much more run oriented, he wouldn’t get that experience. How long does it take for him to be able to hold Mataio Soli and Zach Williams for 3 seconds 35 times? That’s the big question for me. He also has some technical issues to fix, mainly false stepping when base blocking and a slight lean when down blocking on 3 techs. He does have pretty clean footwork down blocking on 2i’s and 2’s but with 3’s it gets a tad sloppy.
As a high school player, he is a dominant T in the run game. His highlights legit only are him getting pancakes in the run game. He plays with great pad level and hand placement and has a bit of nasty to him. He’s comfortable in space as he tracks to the second level under control and strikes with loaded hips and hands repeatedly so there’s reason to believe he could be successful as a tackle because of the space they normally operate with in pass protection.
He’s either got outstanding coaching that he’s been receptive to or he studies a ton of film, most likely a combination of both, because he seems to understand fronts and movement very well. Understandably the tape I’ve seen on him is in highlights, he still is rarely out of position from a target point perspective. For example, some inside zone schemes will put you on a track to put your playside eye on a defenders weakside eye to create a slight horizontal push frontside and create a natural cutback lane for a running back (usually on the weakside of the second double team). He doesn’t miss on that small of a detail once from where he’s aiming on 3:30 minutes of film.
It does concern me that there isn’t pass pro film on him out there. He’s plenty athletic though as the few clips out there of him as a DT show and even there, he seems to be very intelligent and aware of his responsibilities instead of stat chasing.
