FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. — Last season was a tough all the way around for Arkansas as the team didn’t live up to expected team potential in 2023. Second year transfer Var’Keyes Gumms was expected to be a major piece in the tight end room last year, but was not consistently in the rotation.

Gumms was an All-American following his redshirt freshman season at North Texas in 2022. He played in all 14 games for the Mean Green, starting the last six, and caught 34 passes for 458 yards and five touchdowns.

His reception and yards total were tight end records at North Texas. Following the 2022 season, he entered the transfer portal and chose Arkansas in a close race with Cal.

There was certainly a traffic jam at tight end for Arkansas last season with true freshman Luke Hasz and redshirt freshman Ty Washington emerging as promising targets. Former walk-on Nathan Bax and Louisiville transfer Francis Sherman were used primarily for extra blockers for a struggling offensive line.

Now, he looks to shrug off a slow start with a solid training camp over the next few weeks.

“I just feel like coming in was rough for me with the transition and the transfer portal in general,” Gumms said. “So, I had stuff going on behind there. Soon as I got in and started being around the players and coaches more. Then, [Coach Bobby] Petrino came in with his offense -— he’s a cool coach.”

As for Petrino, his offense requires the tight ends to perform similarly to the professional level. Those concepts, although evolved over time, remain a focal point of the success of his unit.

Petrino’s history with tight ends like DJ Williams and Chris Gragg as featured pieces have not been forgotten about in Fayetteville. That gives Gumms, along with Hasz and Washington, a chance to shine this season with their new offensive system.

“I feel like learning this offense you’ll be ready for the pros,” Gumms said. “It’s so similar between here and the [NFL] that I feel our offense will be dangerous.

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MOUNTAIN HOME, Ark. (KY3) – Law enforcement in the Ozarks are urging parents to know what their children are doing on their phones, and who they might be speaking to.

“At the end of the day, parents do need to monitor their kid’s phones, apps, and internet usage,” Baxter County Sheriff John Montgomery explained.

For law enforcement all over the Ozarks, it’s a crime that has seen a rise over the last few years. The stalking of minors online.

“We have seen an uptick, and of course, I would say that it goes in spurts,” Sheriff Montgomery stated.

For the sheriff, his department deals with multiple cases a year. Just this last week, an Amber Alert was issued for 13-year-old Kayden Pace from Phillips County, Ark. Investigators with the Arkansas State Police believe Pace was running away with a 25-year-old subject she met online.

Thankfully, she was found a few hours later, and the man was arrested, but the situation could have turned out much worse.

The sheriff said while more and more kids are accessing social media at a younger age, he also believes that some parents may not be up to date with newer technology.

“With the technology changing, and new apps coming out, it creates a challenge for parents to monitor their children,” Montgomery said.

In a news release, Arkansas State Police encouraged both parents and teenagers to know who they’re chatting with online.

“In a recent situation, we had a 25-year-old male acting as a 17-year-old boy and he was talking to multiple groups in our community,” Arkansas State Police Human Trafficking Coordinator Matt Foster stated.

What predators like this one do is make a personal connection with the child. When something negative happens in the child’s life, that’s when they make their move.

“Whenever there is a bad day at home, it turns into ‘I can help you. I can take you away from that,” Foster explained.

Both the sheriff and state police suggest sitting down with your child and going over what is ok and what isn’t, as it might be what keeps them safe in a fishy situation.

“I would encourage parents to sit down with their kids and have an honest dialogue, and let them know that we’re here to keep them safe,” Montgomery said.

Arkansas State Police and the Baxter County Sheriff’s Office have more resources for parents on internet safety available on their websites.

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LITTLE ROCK, Ark. – COVID-19 is rearing its head again for many Arkansans as cases are on the rise.

According to the Arkansas Department of Health, more than 200 people were hospitalized with COVID-19 in July. They said the number of cases has increased from May until now.

Is a COVID summer surge coming to Arkansas? Here’s what CDC data shows

Dr. Robert Hopkins with UAMS said people with COVID are steadily coming through their doors.

“We’ve seen a lot of increase of folks in the emergency department, the clinics, the outpatient areas,” Hopkins said. “We have seen an increase in hospitalizations.”

At Kavanaugh Pharmacy, owner Anne Pace said she has seen an increase in testing and people wanting Paxlovid, an antiviral used to help your body fight COVID.

Hopkins said high demand for Paxlovid means the pharmacy’s stock is often gone by the end of the day.

Little Rock pharmacy struggles to keep up with high demand of COVID-19 medication Paxlovid

Both Hopkins and Pace say that Paxlovid is more often used for higher-risk groups of people, depending on age, underlying conditions and more. Pace said over-the-counter medications are also used to fight symptoms like fever, runny nose, coughing and congestion.

“Paxlovid may be necessary for some people but it’s certainly not necessary for the vast majority of the population to treat it,” Pace said.

Hopkins said that no matter what, it’s always important to stop the spread.

“If you’re sick, even if you think it’s just a cold or allergies, don’t go around other people,” Hopkins said.

What is Paxlovid, the pill Biden is taking after testing positive for COVID?

Hopkins and Pace say that a vaccine should be coming out soon. However, if you’re in a higher-risk area, like a large indoor event, he recommends wearing a mask.

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