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Arkansas football in 2022 is going to look different. The question is just how much.
National signing day is Wednesday, so an influx of high-schoolers will be on the team come the fall. Seniors like linebacker Grant Morgan are out of eligibility and need replacing. Wide receiver Treylon Burks, too, won’t return after declaring for the NFL draft as a junior.
But a number of players waiting to make a determination.
Linebacker Bumper Pool, safeties Joe Foucha and Jalen Catalon, defensive tackle John Ridgeway, cornerback Montaric Brown, long snapper Jordan Silver, running back Trelon Smith, wide receiver Kendall Catalon and offensive lineman Shane Clenin could return because of the NCAA’s COVID-19 stipulation that allows player who played through that season an extra year of eligibility.
As for when a decision will be made about any of them, the timetable is in the air. Each player will have to decide individually. They could announce on their own or the program could announce en masse.
Pool, Foucha, Catalon, Ridgeway and Brown were all defensive starters during the 2021 regular season. Catalon was lost for the year in the front half of the season, however, and is the likeliest NFL pick among the bunch. Smith started for the first three-quarters of the regular season, too.
Center Ricky Stromberg, a likely NFL pick, albeit in a lower round, announced his return for the 2022 season on Friday.
“I think it’s a no-brainer to come back and go up from there,” Stromberg said.
If the others join him, Arkansas would almost certainly be in line to repeat this season’s success, if not expand on it. But if the losses stack up, the depth chart may be an unfamiliar one when spring practice rolls around.