Transfers beef up UA’s hope on D-line
FAYETTEVILLE — The Arkansas Razorbacks’ pass rush was not a consistently disruptive force in 2020.
After the season, second-year University of Arkansas Coach Sam Pittman replaced defensive line assistant Derrick LeBlanc with Jermial Ashley, then he vowed to re-stock the front even as the Razorbacks lost strong-man nose guard Jonathan Marshall to the New York Jets in the NFL Draft.
The Razorbacks tapped into the transfer portal and defensive coordinator Barry Odom’s former connections to land Missouri transfers Tre Williams and Markell
Utsey, a native of Little
Rock, then got another boost with the addition of Illinois State transfer
John Ridgeway, a 6-5, 320-pound tackle.
Ridgeway, Williams and
Utsey have logged enough reps with the starting unit that it’s clear all three are expected to be in the two-deep to provide premium depth where it was so scant last season.
Utsey, a 6-4, 290-pounder who prepped at Little Rock Parkview and wears jersey No. 0, said his transfer decision was pretty clear.
“I feel like it was a great opportunity for me to play in the SEC and play back home,” Utsey said. “I obviously have the opportunity to play for Coach Odom again. Just being back home closer to family, I feel like it was a great opportunity for success.”
Ridgeway said he narrowed his transfer choices to three schools, then decided to drive to Fayetteville on his own because official visits could not take place due to covid-19.
“I figured Arkansas was only an eight-hour drive, so why not take it?” he said. “So I took the drive and I loved the atmosphere. I looked around the campus. I took my girlfriend and the dog, let him see everything. The parents loved it. I loved it.”
Ridgeway said his phone blew up when he hit the transfer portal, but playing in the SEC at a campus he loved was a difference-maker.
“The best talent at the next level comes out of the SEC, so I figured why not go against them,” he said. “It was also an opportunity for me to get looked at going at a higher level. Also, being able to play more than one position so I can be more versatile.”
Ridgeway was a nose guard only at Illinois State, but he works at the nose and tackle for the Razorbacks.
Ridgeway joked around when asked which other two programs were his finalists.
“The Chicago Bears and the Green Bay Packers,” he said.
Odom, the second-year defensive coordinator, said he thinks the three newcomers have seized their opportunities by learning the systems.
“I think there are some similarities with some calls and variations of those calls in how that system was, so it’s benefited them in the ability to pick it up a little quicker,” Odom said of Williams and Utsey. “John has been maybe more of a surprise for me just because he came in and learned everything like a true freshman, and he hasn’t been here that long.
“To see what he’s done now through the short time we’ve been in camp, we’ve been super impressed with his knowledge base, his football IQ and the ability not only to take it from the meeting room but then out and effectively do it in the tempo we play with.”
Returning veterans with plenty of action under their belts such as Dorian Gerald, Eric Gregory, Isaiah Nichols, Mataio Soli, Zach Williams, Taurean Carter and Jashaud Stewart have felt the push. The veterans do not sound resentful at being challenged for playing time by the newcomers.
“Tre and Kell, they came in here and they look like what they are, man,” said Gregory, a junior combo lineman. “They’re five-year guys, and they came in here, and they’re working. They’re getting us better. I know they’re getting me better for sure, man.”
Gerald, a senior end, said the trio made “great additions” to the team.
“I think Tre has helped me a lot,” Gerald said. “But unlike a lot of people in the past, I’ve learned a lot from Kell as a D-tackle. He’s really good with pass rush. So I’ve learned a lot with him.”
Gregory called Williams a “twitchy” athlete.
“He’s teaching me a lot: How to work the edge, bend the edge,” Gregory said. “Kell, he’s teaching me the inside. How to get guys back and use my feet, use my hands. They’re good. There’s big competition on the D-line with those guys.”
Redshirt sophomore Zach Williams described the new vibe in the defensive line room as a healthy competition.
“And I respect that they’re going to make us fight for a spot every day,” Williams said late last week. “That’s going to make us all better. Outside of practice and everything football-related, we all mesh very well.
“Like tonight, everybody is trying to do something together as a D-line. We’ve never really done that before. I feel like there’s a difference between football relationships and outside relationships, and I think that we’re equally great in both.”
Utsey said he was comfortable rejoining with Tre Williams at Arkansas, but he had to learn his new teammates.
“The other guys, I didn’t know them from a can of paint,” Utsey said. “But just having some time to get to know them and get to work with them and stuff like that and just get as close as possible. Because I really believe that the closer we are as a unit the better we are on the field. I feel like the brotherhood aspect is huge.”
Ridgeway said he’s already learned things from Utsey.
“He’s really good,” Ridgeway said. “I remember one time he was doing a little stutter step, and I watched it and the next day I used it. And I was like, ‘Yeah, see that? I watched you do that.’ I did it better though.”
Utsey said he thinks Williams, who was his roommate as a freshman at Missouri and wears No. 55, will be a big impact player.
“He’s real fast, he’s strong, he’s got great size and I feel like coming off the edge, he’s a monster,” Utsey said. “I feel like it’s going to be hard to stop him this year.”
Ashley, the defensive line coach, said it was “extremely nice” to have a hoss like Ridgeway, who wears No. 99, playing on the interior.
“It’s always nice to have bigger guys that can hold up in the middle and give you a little push, especially guys that work hard like Ridgeway and the other guys that are sitting in there,” Ashley said.