Tag: Chris Paul Jr.

8 transfer portal entrants that Alabama could pursue

Alabama has struck gold multiple times by landing stars from the transfer portal. Here are eight names currently in the portal to keep an eye on!

The window for undergraduates to enter the transfer portal opened up on Monday, Dec. 4. Since then, there has been a multitude of players that have entered the transfer portal.

Alabama has shown interest in Texas A&M defensive line transfer Lebbeus “LT” Overton. Other than that, there has not been confirmed interest that Alabama is pursuing any other transfers.

It will be interesting to see if Alabama decides to target any transfers that are currently available or wait until other players become available in the transfer portal.

Roll Tide Wire takes a look at eight transfer portal entrants that Alabama could look to pursue in the near future.

Oklahoma Sooners offer former Arkansas Razorbacks linebacker Chris Paul Jr

Oklahoma is the latest to offer former Arkansas linebacker Chris Paul Jr.

Oklahoma’s defensive slide at the end of the season has been the subject of many dialogues people have had about Oklahoma in the aftermath of their 10-2 regular season. The defense was a huge issue early on in the Kansas game, which resulted in a loss. The against Oklahoma State in the first half put the Sooners in a spot where their offense had to be perfect. The offense didn’t do enough to overcome.

Against TCU, the Sooners had major issues covering the middle of the field, and while the offense put up over 60 points on their own, the defense was anything but encouraging.

And as of last night, it looks like one of the best players on the team, Danny Stutsman, will not return, instead choosing to depart OU for the NFL Draft. So, how will Oklahoma continue to reshape its defensive identity while losing a central figure in the middle of the defense?

They can start by landing former Arkansas linebacker Chris Paul Jr., who the Sooners offered Thursday morning.

Paul is a talented linebacker and a former three-star recruit from Georgia. Paul burst onto the scene as a redshirt freshman in 2022. Despite starting just two games, he amassed 62 tackles, eight TFLs, and four sacks that season. He was named a second-team freshman All-American by a few media outlets for his efforts.

In 11 games this season, he recorded 74 total tackles, 6.5 tackles for loss, and two sacks. Paul has already received interest from schools such as South Carolina, Texas A&M, Lousiville, Florida State, and Ole Miss. Three crystal balls to Ole Miss have already been entered on 247 Sports. No decision has been made, but the Sooners may have to act fast if they plan to make a add the productive linebacker.

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It’s about time! Chris Paul Jr. finally healthy, ready to roll for Arkansas

Paul has been designated the next great Arkansas linebacker. Now he finally gets a chance to show it.

When linebacker Chris Paul Jr. was a freshman, he sat and watched Grant Morgan and Hayden Henry. As a redshirt freshman, he played alongside Bumper Pool and Drew Sanders.

Now, as a sophomore, finally healthy enough and with no suspension hanging over his head, the opportunity to follow in former teammates’ footsteps has arrived.

Paul played only pieces of Arkansas’ opener against Western Carolina in Week 1 before being ejected in the second half for targeting, leading to a suspension for the first half of Week 2 against Kent State. Suspension served and injury healed, Saturday’s Week 3 against Brigham Young will mark the first time Paul will be at 100% this year.

His coach, Sam Pittman, is ready to see his No. 1 linebacker at full-go.

“He came up to me numerous times in practice telling me, ‘you’re not going to be out there in the first half (against Kent State), but when you get out there, you need to basically introduce yourself again’ and things like that,” Paul said Tuesday.

The sophomore had five tackles in one half. Not bad for a guy expected to become the next great Arkansas linebacker, even if that designation is unafir for a guy in just his second year on the field.

It also fits, based off what flashed in 2022, when he had more than 50 tackles despite serving in a back-up role behind Pool and Sanders. Now comes the opportunity for the next step.

“Man, I’m highly excited,” Paul said. “You know, this is my first real game, playing a full game and things like that. Just to get in front of the Razorback crowd and just the atmosphere and the energy that they bring, I just know it’s going to be a great Saturday.”

With no Chris Paul Jr. for first half, where does Arkansas turn against Kent State?

Jaheim Thomas may be the No. 1 linebacker and Arkansas should get its first look at transfer Antonio Grier, too.

Chris Paul Jr. was expected by most to be Arkansas’ leading tackler in the 2023. He still may be.

But between mild injuries in fall camp, coming off the bench in the Razorbacks’ Week 1 game against Western Carolina and his targeting penalty against the Catamounts that resulted in his ejection and suspension for the first half of Saturday’s game against Kent State, there are some questions.

No one questions Paul’s talent. He had 62 tackles, fifth on the team, last year as Arkansas’ third linebacker behind the school’s all-time leader and another first-round NFL draft pick. His absence Saturday isn’t as concerning as it would be if Arkansas were in the midst of SEC play; it’s still ignominious.

The good news for the Razorbacks defense is that linebacker appears to be one of the deepest spots on the roster. At least, considering Arkansas almost never runs more than two on the field at a time.

Cincinnati transfer Jaheim Thomas may be the No. 1 now regardless of Paul’s availability. Thomas had eight tackles, including 1 1/2 for-loss, in the opener. Arkansas is also expected to have South Florida transfer Antonio Grier in Week 2. Grier led the Bulls in tackles in 2020 and 2021 before injuries limited him to just four games last year. Throw in Jordan Crook and Brad Spence to round out the five and the Hogs are well set.

Spence, a freshman, ran with Thomas on the first-team during practice part of the week, so he should see a spike in snaps. And coaches want to see what Grier brings to the SEC after doctors cleared him to make his debut against Kent State.

“He practiced partially … before the Western Carolina game,” Pittman said. “But he’s practiced all week, so they cleared him to do everything. And he’s been good over the last two days. I expect him to be available.”

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Projecting Arkansas’ stat totals leaders by end of the season

Picking Arkansas’ record at the end of the season is tough. For now, let’s take a guess at the team leaders’ statistical numbers.

Arkansas is a bit of a strange team for the masses in the college football world of prognostication to put a finger on.

The Razorbacks have been on the rise each of the last three years with coach Sam Pittman at the helm. So much so they’re a team receiving votes in the preseason Top 25.

They’re also a team that plays in the gauntlet that is the SEC West. And they also have, basically, a whole new receiving corps and almost completely revamped secondary.

Back to the other side, KJ Jefferson and Rocket Sanders may be a top-five-in-the-country quarterback-running back duo.

Then to the questionable, the defense has no proven superstars.

The entire thing has led to mixed opinions on how the Hogs will finish record-wise.

Well, we aren’t going there today. That’s saved for a bit later this week. For now, we’re just going to look at the individuals and project who may be the best for Arkansas on the stat sheet.

Here are managing editor E. Wayne’s projections for Arkansas’ leaders in each of six different categories and what he thinks those numbers will be by season’s end.

Arkansas preseason depth chart – Linebackers

Linebacker should be a strength for Arkansas this year. The Hogs have to get healthy there first, though.

The Arkansas linebacker spot should be a good spot for the Razorbacks in 2023.

But heading into the team’s opener on Saturday against FCS Western Carolina, the unit looks perhaps least like it was expected among all the positional groups. One projected starter is all but out and the other is iffy, though coach Sam Pittman has been somewhat vague on the latter’s status.

When Chris Paul Jr., Antonio Grier, Jordan Crook and Jaheim Thomas are all healthy, Arkansas can roll a combination of near-stars, established talent and future all-league players among its first four.

Grier and Paul could be iffy for the opener, but that may be a blessing in disguise. Thomas and Crook have experience and will get plenty of reps, but the players behind them have almost no idea what it’s like to play college football. A game against the Catamounts will help make that a thing of the past.

With that in mind, let’s take a look at how the Arkansas linebackers stack up, or rather, how we expect them to stack up by the end of the season.

Razorbacks’ first scrimmage of fall camp shows depth will be tested once again

Following the first scrimmage of fall camp, injuries provide a reminder of how important depth will be to Arkansas’ success this season.

Life in the SEC is a grind but the most successful teams are the ones that can handle the grueling demands of playing in college football’s best conference.

This is usually brought up when talking about the quality of teams in the conference and difficult schedules that come from that – a problem Arkansas fans are all too familiar with. However, the other issue that comes with playing in the SEC is depth. As mentioned before, the best teams in the SEC are almost always the ones that have the depth to handle injuries at key positions.

Last year, Arkansas saw firsthand how injuries can pile up and railroad an entire season. When the injury bug reared its’ ugly head in the secondary and to starting quarterback [autotag]KJ Jefferson[/autotag], the Razorbacks were pretty much done for.

[autotag]Sam Pittman[/autotag] knows that in order to compete in the SEC you have to have starting-level talent in the two-deep, and sometimes even three-deep, of your depth chart. That was what Pittman set out to accomplish this offseason.

Saturday, the Razorbacks held their first scrimmage of fall camp. The running backs showed out and the defensive line made life difficult on the quarterbacks, but unfortunately the team suffered some injuries at key positions.

“We did have a couple of guys get banged up out there with [autotag]Sam Mbake[/autotag] and [autotag]Nathan Bax[/autotag],” Pittman said to the media following Saturday’s practice. “At this time I don’t know the full extent of either one of their injuries.”

Later that evening, Mbake posted on social media that fans would “have to wait a lil longer” and to “trust the process” which might indicate that he will miss an extended period of time with this injury. Pittman also mentioned that projected starting linebacker [autotag]Chris Paul Jr.[/autotag], left tackle [autotag]Devon Manuel[/autotag] and defensive tackle [autotag]Tank Booker[/autotag] were all three held out of action due to injuries.

Wide receiver, tight end, linebacker and offensive line are areas of concern for Arkansas this season, meaning health could play an important role in the level of success for those position groups. For the first time in a really long time, defensive line has the luxury of depth.

Pittman did say that if it was an actual game, then the trio of Paul, Manuel and Booker likely would’ve played. While that is a positive sign, seeing injuries in key areas should hammer home the importance of depth and having guys be able to step up.

It’s certainly not the last time this season that Pittman’s Hogs will face adversity due to injuries, let’s just hope that they’re better prepared to handle that than a year ago.

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Paul Jr. added to Butkus Award watch list

Chris Paul is one of 51 players on the Butkus Award watch list which goes to the nation’s top collegiate linebacker.

Christopher ‘Pooh’ Paul Jr. is going to be a force to be reckoned with in 2023.

The rising sophomore was named to the Butkus Award watch list on Thursday.

He is one of 51 players on the list, alluding to the number 51 that Dick Butkus wore in the NFL and the namesake of the award.

Paul Jr. is coming off earning freshman All-American honors from College Football News and The Athletic as well as freshman All-SEC praise from the league’s coaches.

He compiled 62 tackles with eight of them for a loss and had four sacks, both of which were top five on the team.

The award semifinalists will likely be named by Oct. 30, with finalists to follow on Nov. 20. The winner will be named on or before Dec. 6. A 51-member expert panel of coaches, scouts and journalists is included in the selection process.

Easier schedule at outset should help Arkansas build confidence

Arkansas is looking for a third consecutive 3-0 start to the football season in 2023.

There’s going to be a lot of unproven players on the Arkansas two-deep when the season kicks off on Sept. 2 against Western Carolina in Little Rock.

Sure, we know what KJ Jefferson and Rocket Sanders and Christopher ‘Pooh’ Paul and guys like that can do.

But a good majority of the wide receiver room? Guys on the defensive line and linebacker and even some in the secondary? They’ve got some questions to answer.

Playing the Catamounts and then Kent State and BYU before league play starts will hopefully, in Arkansas’ case, translate to a 3-0 start.

Each of the last two seasons, the Razorbacks have started 3-0. And they did it last year playing a ranked Cincinnati team coming off a College Football Playoff appearance and then squaring off against a pesky South Carolina team before facing Bobby Petrino’s Missouri State.

They had to play a ranked Texas the year before that. There isn’t a marquee name in the first three weeks this year, unless you consider BYU a marquee name (I don’t think anyone does).

“We’re trying to approach camp [about] us getting better,” Pittman said. “We still have a lot of new faces, and that’s not only on the kids, but the coaching staff.

“Most of our guys were with us through spring ball with our new staff, but we still have quite a few that we have to figure out if they’re going to help us or not this year, too.”

Because what comes after those three games is a gauntlet for anyone. At LSU, Texas A&M in Jerry World, at Ole Miss and at Alabama.

Like former interim Arkansas coach and long time defensive coordinator Joe Kines once said, “in the SEC, they slit your throat and drink your blood.”

Arkansas Football: Offseason Depth Chart-Linebackers

The linebacker room is no longer thin, although it may not be packing the star power it had in 2022.

Defensive coordinator Barry Odom and linebacker coach Michael Scherer coached up one of the best linebacker groups in the country last season, headlined by Bumper Pool and Drew Sanders.

All parties are no longer in Fayetteville. Odom is in UNLV, taking Scherer with him. Pool completed his eligibility, and Sanders is in the NFL.

The linebacker group is not left with anything, though. New defensive coordinator Travis Williams will also coach the linebackers, a deep group with 12 players.

Chris Paul Jr. is the group veteran, and the newly acquired transfer Antonio Grier should be an apparent starter. The extent of how deep Williams will go in the rotation will depend on the progress of younger players and the potential addition of more transfers from the portal.