Ryan Silverfield isn’t looking to win over his players in the first stretch of Arkansas’ fall camp. He’s trying to harden them.
The Razorbacks’ new coach made that much clear Monday as the team prepared for the start of practice Wednesday in Fayetteville. Silverfield said the opening weeks are going to be demanding, physical and, by design, uncomfortable.
“This is a grind,” Silverfield said Monday. “We are going to push, we are going to strain.
The next couple weeks, I don't want anyone to like me. It's got to be a physical camp, because we can't expect to have a physical ball club and not have contact practice.
"Obviously, there's limitations in how many tackling scrimmages you can do. There's limitations [with] how long before you go to full pads.
"Obviously, we're going to be smart. We want to be healthy because we understand how important depth is in this conference.
But I think that they got to go out there and understand this is different. This is not spring football.
This is not summer OTAs... They got to take care of their bodies.
"They got to eat. They got to hydrate.
They got to pay attention to meetings because we're throwing everything at them. And I especially told our leadership group, I said, I'm coming after you.
I'm going to coach you really hard."
Arkansas is scheduled to hold its first full-pads practice Aug. 11. The Hogs will follow that with scrimmages on Aug. 16 and Aug. 22, and the program has 25 practices lined up before its Sept. 5 opener against North Alabama.
Even with camp approaching, the clearest unresolved issue is at quarterback. Redshirt sophomore KJ Jackson and Memphis transfer AJ Hill, a redshirt freshman, remain locked in a battle for the starting job, and Silverfield said that competition is still very much alive.
Jackson will work with the first group when practice opens Wednesday, while Hill will get those snaps on Thursday. Silverfield said the staff plans to keep rotating them.
“We'll truly do an alternating deal,” Silverfield said. “If we get to the point at some point... where we fell like, 'Hey, this guy now needs to get the lion's share with the ones', that'll probably be pretty telling [as to] who our starter is.
"Obviously, somebody's going to have their feelings hurt, but we've had those conversations. It's a long season.
We need them both to buy into the way we're going to do things. I'm telling you right now, it's a neck-and-neck battle, and that's a very good thing for us.”
In Other News...
Mizzou Fall Camp Is Already Shaping Two Crucial Position Battles
Missouris second fall camp practice with media access offered an early look at a roster already sorting itself into tiers, and a couple of the most watchable battles are right where the Tigers can least afford uncertainty. Redshirt senior defensive tackle Marquis Gracial set the tone at the opening rally, while the edge group continued to sort through its pecking order as Darris Smith, Langden Kitchen and Daeden Hopkins handled the bulk of the snaps with a fourth rotation spot still up for grabs.
The competition is just as real on the other side of the ball, where Austin Simmons has been leading drills and Matt Zollers, Nick Evers and Gavin Sidwar are all trying to separate in the backup quarterback race. Special teams also got a closer look, with punter Brunno Reus taking first-team reps, and there was another notable presence at practice in four-star linebacker JJ Bush, who was back with the team after his charges were dropped. [Read more 🡒]
Missouris New QB Is Bringing An Early Tigers Storyline Into Focus
Austin Simmons has wasted little time settling into a new role in Columbia. The former Ole Miss quarterback, now Missouris starter for the 2026 season, is already at the center of the Tigers early camp storyline as he works to get comfortable in a different offense and build timing with a new group of pass catchers. Among the most familiar faces is fellow Ole Miss transfer Cayden Lee, giving Simmons at least one important connection as he learns the rhythm of his new team.
For Missouri, the appeal goes beyond the transfer headlines. Simmons is approaching fall camp with a day-by-day mindset, leaning on preparation as he adapts and tries to turn early reps into real chemistry. The Tigers do not need a fully polished product in August, but they do need signs that the quarterback-room transition is moving in the right direction, and Simmons presence is already making that one of the more closely watched developments of the preseason. [Read more 🡒]
Mizzou Is Getting National Respect With One Brutal Test Still Ahead
USA Todays preseason Coaches Top 25 gave Missouri a fresh reminder that the program has earned a seat at the national table, and the Tigers have a few individual accolades to match. Ahmad Hardy, Cayden Green and Brett Le Blanc all landed on national award watchlists, with Hardy in the Maxwell Award mix, Green up for the Outland Trophy and Le Blanc on the Patrick Mannelly Award list. Hardy and Green were also voted to the Preseason All-SEC First Team, another sign that Missouri has some recognized talent up front and in the backfield.
The ranking matters because it comes with expectations, and Missouri now has to live up to them while still carrying one brutal test on the schedule that will help define how real this respect is. For a program trying to turn preseason praise into something more lasting, the watchlist buzz is nice, but the bigger question is whether the Tigers can back it up when the spotlight gets brighter. [Read more 🡒]