FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. — Arkansas is in the same position it was last year. Sam Pittman opted not to bring in anyone of note to supplement the existing receivers on the roster. Monte Harrison and Jordan Anthony, the two biggest offseason acquisitions have a combined 140 yards on the season.
Despite Arkansas ranking fifth in the SEC in passing yards (2,780), it is part of a larger mirage for the offense running up the score against subpar FBS defenses.
Wide Receiver Jordan Anthony (11) lines up for a route against the Texas Longhorns. Texas won 20-10 / Nilsen Roman – Hogs on SI
Perhaps even more concerning, Arkansas has left one of the best receivers in the country on an island to fend for himself. Andrew Armstrong ranks second in the SEC in both yards (931) and catches (61). Both also rank top-25 nationally.
Armstrong accounts for 33.5% of Arkansas’ receiving yards, the most of any SEC schools for a single receiver other than Dane Key of the Kentucky Wildcats. The Wildcats have just 1,834 passing yards as a team.
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Arkansas Razorbacks wide receiver Andrew Armstrong celebrating a touchdown against the LSU Tigers on Saturday night in Fayetteville, Ark. / Nilsen Roman-Hogs on SI Images
Isaiah Sategna, currently second on the Hogs in receiving, falls short of half of Armstrong’s production at 431 yards. Isaac TeSlaa just reached exactly half of his catch total from last year (17) with his lone catch for 7 yards against the Texas Longhorns.
Even tight end Luke Hasz has been held to just 278 yards through 10 games after putting up 253 yards as a true freshman in four games plus a drive before suffering a season-ending injury. Only one other tight end on the team has 25 yards receiving and he’s not even on the team anymore (Ty Washington).
Tyrone Broden, a breakout star in camp, lags even further behind at just 15 catches for 197 yards.
Pittman believes the poor wide receiver play is starting to have spillover effects for Taylen Green and his decision making with the football.
“We had a couple of missed routes that Taylen had to hold the football because we weren’t running the right route,” Pittman said. “Then we got whipped on the edge a couple times.”
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Arkansas will look for just its second 100-yard performance from a receiver not named Armstrong of the season against Louisiana Tech. TeSlaa had 120 yards against Texas A&M, 75 of which came on one catch early in the game.
Kickoff between the Razorbacks and Louisiana Tech is scheduled for 3 p.m. Saturday. The game will be streamed on SEC+.
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Wally Hall is assistant managing sports editor for the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette. A graduate of the University of Arkansas-Little Rock after an honorable discharge from the U.S. Air Force, he is a member and past president of the Football Writers Association of America, member of the U.S. Basketball Writers Association, past president and current executive committee and board member of the Arkansas Sports Hall of Fame, and voter for the Heisman Trophy. He has been awarded Arkansas Sportswriter of the Year 10 times and has been inducted into the Arkansas Sports Hall of Fame and Arkansas Sportswriters and Sportscasters Hall of Fame.
Three people were killed and another injured in crashes on Arkansas roads from Wednesday to Friday, according to preliminary police reports.
On Wednesday, Lonnie Scott, 81, of Clinton was killed when the car he was driving struck another vehicle in Clinton, a report from Clinton police says.
Scott was driving a 2003 Chevrolet Impala west on Volunteer Parkway at 10:22 a.m. when he failed to stop at a stop sign and struck a 2023 Dodge 5500 headed south on Quality Drive, the report says.
On Friday, Marvin Brown, 48, of McNeil was killed in a single-vehicle crash in Camden, a report from Camden police says.
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Brown was driving a 2012 Chevrolet Silverado north on Cash Road near Washington Street at 5:09 p.m. when the vehicle left the roadway and struck a utility pole, the report says. Shamika Milton, 39, of Camden, a passenger in the truck, was injured, the report says.
Around 6:50 p.m. Friday, Ricki Rich, 77, of Parkdale was killed in a single-vehicle crash on Arkansas 8 in rural Ashley County, a report from the Arkansas State Police says.
Rich was driving a 2019 Chevrolet Equinox east near Ashley Road 34 when the vehicle left the roadway and hit a tree, the report says.
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Rafael Escalera Montoto
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Rafael is a crime and breaking news reporter at the Arkansas Democrat Gazette. Before joining the Democrat-Gazette, he wrote breaking news and feature stories at Reuters in Mexico City, where he covered a range of topics across Central and South America. He has also covered housing, education, business and other topics at The Baltimore Banner. He is a graduate of the Craig Newmark Graduate School of Journalism at the City University of New York (CUNY) and is from San Juan, Puerto Rico.
A 23‑year‑old woman from Calico Rock, Arkansas, was seriously injured Friday afternoon in a single‑vehicle crash on U.S. 160, two miles west of West Plains.
According to the Missouri State Highway Patrol, the crash occurred at 3:55 p.m. when the westbound 2021 Nissan Sentra ran off the right side of the roadway near Highway JJ. The car struck an embankment and came to rest on the north side of the road.
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The driver, who was wearing a seat belt, suffered moderate injuries. She was airlifted by Air Evac to Cox South Hospital in Springfield.
