More Depth Is Lost by Arkansas Along the Offensive Line
After spring camp, the Razorbacks had just 13 scholarship offensive linemen left.
The addition of redshirt freshman guard Paris Patterson to the transfer portal on Saturday hurt the depth of the Razorbacks’ offensive line.
Over the course of his first two collegiate seasons, Patterson hasn’t played much. He was a highly regarded 3-star recruit from East St. Louis, Illinois, when he graduated from high school. Being 6 feet 6 inches and 345 pounds, his size made him a likely power conference starter.
In the country during the 2023 recruitment cycle, he was rated No. 584. According to the 247sports composite ranking, Patterson was also ranked as the No. 10 recruit in the state of Illinois and the No. 51 offensive guard. He chose to commit to the Razorbacks over Colorado, LSU, and Nebraska after receiving 15 rumored offers.
Last season, Arkansas’ offensive line was among the worst in all of college football. At almost four sacks a game, the unit had the lowest sack allowance rate in the SEC. Their 138 yards of running per game, enough for a No. 87 national ranking, made them vile by Razorbacks coach Sam Pittman’s standards.
This offseason, Pittman brought on Eric Mateos, one of the most accomplished offensive line coaches in the industry. Using some of the best transfers available, the position was supposed to be completely revamped. After spring practice ended, all three of the portal signees—right tackle Keyshawn Blackstock, left tackle Fernando Carmona, and center Addison Nichols—established themselves as starters.
The official Arkansas roster indicates that the squad presently only has thirteen offensive linemen on scholarship. The Razorbacks may attempt to add one or two linemen during the spring transfer window because there are up to nine available spots. The starting left tackle for the Hogs the previous season, Andrew Chamblee, entered the portal after quitting the team before to the start of spring workouts.
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