The Arkansas Razorbacks are about to get their first real look at what Ryan Silverfield’s debut season in Fayetteville will become.
With fall camp set to open, Arkansas is moving from offseason noise to actual football. Silverfield’s first camp as head coach arrives with the program coming off a winless SEC season, and the pressure is obvious. There’s also a long runway before the 2026 season begins, but the work starts now.
Silverfield will meet with the media at 11 a.m. on Monday, August 3, before players report to campus the next day. The Razorbacks’ first practice is scheduled for approximately 3:15 p.m. on Wednesday, August 5.
Arkansas will get nine practices in before the 2026-27 school year begins, with most sessions set for about 3:15 p.m. The schedule includes the first full-pads practice on August 11 and the first scrimmage on August 16. After that, practice times shift to the morning starting August 18.
Media access will be steady through camp, with reporters allowed at 13 of the first 15 practices. The first session will also include defensive coordinator Ron Roberts and a few players afterward. Offensive coordinator Tim Cramsey is scheduled to speak after the second practice, and special teams coordinator Chad Lunsford will be available after the third along with Arkansas’ specialists.
Both scrimmages will be closed to the media. The first is set for 1 p.m. on Sunday, Aug. 16, and the second comes on Saturday, Aug.
- The Aug. 23 practice will be the last one open to media before the team turns its attention to the opener behind closed doors.
The biggest storyline in camp is the quarterback battle. KJ Jackson, who is back with the Razorbacks, and Memphis transfer AJ Hill are competing to be the starter against North Alabama, and neither has separated from the other yet.
That competition is only one piece of a much bigger puzzle. Arkansas has more than 80 new players on the roster, so every rep matters as the staff tries to sort out the depth chart and build something stable.
There are still major questions at offensive line, wide receiver, and in the defensive secondary, which makes this camp even more important for a team that enters the year as an underdog. North Alabama may not be the biggest early test, though that’s no guarantee, and Week 2 at Utah will demand a much cleaner, sharper version of the Razorbacks.
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