Tag: jordan domineck

“Who is Jordan Domineck?” Arkansas fans know the unheralded transfer now

Jordan Domineck wasn’t prepared for Arkansas’ intensity when he first arrived. He sure is now.

Drew Sanders. Dwight McGlothern. Latavious Brini. Landon Jackson Jr. Alabama. LSU. Georgia.

Arkansas picked up its fair share of impact players from the transfer portal in the offseason. All four of the aforementioned played in the SEC, at powerhouse schools (LSU wasn’t a powerhouse last year, but you get it). One name slid a bit under the radar, though.

Not anymore.

Jordan Domineck is a big reason the Razorbacks lead the country in sacks. The Georgia Tech transfer has four, second on the team behind Sanders. And he’s doing it from a reserve spot.

Coach Sam Pittman recruited him for a reason, after all. And the coach knew pretty quick, before he had even met him, he was getting a good one.

“His parents to be perfectly honest with you. His mannerisms over the phone,” Pittman said. “You’re phone recruiting. We never had met him before. Talking to his mom and dad, they’re classy people, wonderful people. He’s a guy that just wanted to compete in this league.”

Domineck was shell-shocked, initially, Pittman said, when he arrived in Fayetteville. The Razorbacks run their program quite a bit differently than Georgia Tech. It took a while for Domineck to adjust.

But he was a guy who had more than 70 tackles and 7 1/2 sacks his last two years with the Yellow Jackets. Once he adjusted, things would be fine.

“There wasn’t a problem at Georgia Tech,” Pittman said. “It was about ‘Look, I’ve got an opportunity to go to the SEC. I’d like to see if I’m good enough to play in the SEC.’”

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The answer through three games is a resounding ‘yes.’

Quarterback pressure the ultimate deciding factor in Arkansas’ win over Missouri State

Arkansas relied heavily on quarterback sacks in their comeback win over Missouri State on Saturday night.

The Arkansas defense left the field following Saturday night’s win over Missouri State with areas of concern.

For the third straight week, the No. 10 Razorbacks allowed over 350 yards of passing. There were also tackling concerns, as well as a few committed penalties that helped the opposition.

However, there was one aspect of the stat sheet that Arkansas’ defense performed well in, and that was making stops behind the line of scrimmage.

In Saturday’s 38-27 win over Missouri State, the defense hurried the quarterback five times, made nine tackles for loss, and sacked quarterback Jason Shelley eight times.

Head coach [autotag]Sam Pittman[/autotag] said after the game that he is proud of his defense for making so sacks because Missouri State’s offensive line, as well as Shelley, provided his unit with a challenge all game long.

“(Shelly) is hard to tackle. He’s a good player,” Pittman said after Arkansas’ win Saturday night. “But we had to pressure him and of course, (Jordan Domineck) got a couple I guess. Drew (Sanders) got two or three I think.”

Most of the sacks were recorded by the trio of [autotag]Drew Sanders[/autotag], [autotag]Jordan Domineck[/autotag], and [autotag]Zach Williams[/autotag], who combined to make 6.5 sacks in the game. Sanders led the unit with 2.5 sacks.

Sanders has been an asset to the Arkansas defense since his arrival from Alabama. Pittman expressed how valuable Sanders is to the Arkansas pass rush.

“(Sanders) is so valuable in that because he can, a lot of times, run you down if you get out of the pocket. Going into the game that was exactly the gameplan,” Pittman said. “We were going to put pressure on (Shelley) because we knew how good their receivers were. We just couldn’t contain him. He’d get outside the pocket and make plays with his feet or his arm.”

Pittman went on to say Sanders is in his element when he pressures the opposing quarterback and praised defensive coordinator Barry Odom and linebackers coach Michael Scherer for continuing to draw up plans to get him into the opposing backfield often.

Through three games at Arkansas, Sanders has made 28 stops with 6.5 tackles for loss.

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Six players to watch in Arkansas first SEC matchup of the season

Six for South Carolina and six for the Hogs. These will be the difference makers.

Razorback Stadium gets its first SEC matchup of the season with Arkansas hosting the South Carolina Gamecocks on Saturday.

Both teams won their season openers, the Hogs taking on a much more challenging opponent in Cincinnati, who was ranked in last Saturday’s duel. The Razorbacks had to go through a physical battle with the Bearcats.

Arkansas suffered two big losses in the secondary, Jalen Catalou and Myles Slusher unable to finish the game. Both players are listed as questionable. 

Losing an All-American safety doesn’t help the Hogs, especially after the secondary struggled in the second half against the Bearcats. Gamecocks’ quarterback Spencer Rattler poses a tougher challenge than Ben Bryant, who threw two touchdowns in the second half.

The Hogs have a 73% chance of winning, according to FPI. South Carolina is currently on a three-game winning streak against the Hogs, the last matchup coming in 2017. Head coach Shane Beamer will rely heavily on his “Beamer Ball” special teams to keep the streak alive.

Two Arkansas defenders earn SEC Player of the Week honors

Linebacker Bumper Pool and defensive Jordan Domineck had games to remember in Arkansas’ opener.

Bumper Pool picked up Saturday right where he left off last season. Jordan Domineck’s first game at Arkansas was a boon, too.

Each of their efforts were enough to earn them SEC Player of the Week honors from the league after Week 1.

Pool, who led the SEC in tackles last year and was tied for 10th in FBS, had 13 stops, including one for-loss in Arkansas’ 31-24 win over Cincinnati on Saturday. It was his 18th career double-digit-tackle game in 27 starts.

Domineck, a transfer from Georgia Tech, didn’t start for the Razorbacks. But in a sign of the Hogs’ new depth up front, he played plenty of snaps. None were bigger than his strip-sack of quarterback Ben Bryant that he recovered on the 37. Arkansas scored two plays later for a two-touchdown lead.

Arkansas hosts South Carolina on Saturday at 11 a.m. to open SEC play.

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How is Arkansas Football replacing their biggest losses from last season?

Arkansas football has high expectations for 2022, but what area will they need to address the most heading into the season?

Arkansas Football is one of the teams that everyone is looking forward to watching in 2022. There is plenty of excitement surrounding the return of KJ Jefferson at the quarterback position, as well as the stable of running backs and the potential of the transfer wide receivers such as [autotag]Jadon Haselwood[/autotag].

But, that seems to be where the focus is, on offense. How does Arkansas look defensively heading into the new season? That seems to be a burning question.

Tom VanHaaren of ESPN wrote a piece called “How college football’s way-too-early top 25 teams are replacing their biggest losses“, with Arkansas’ defense being the biggest question.

Arkansas, which ranks No. 20 in the way-too-early top 25 from ESPN, will be looking to replace eight key defenders including [autotag]Grant Morgan[/autotag], [autotag]Hayden Henry[/autotag], and [autotag]Tre Williams,[/autotag] as well as Joe Foucha and Greg Brooks Jr. who left Arkansas for LSU via the transfer portal.

Despite the losses, Arkansas reloaded by bringing in talent from the transfer portal, and that is where they can begin filling holes says VanHaaren.

On the defensive line, the Arkansas coaches signed LSU defensive end transfer [autotag]Landon Jackson[/autotag], who was the No. 78 prospect in the 2021 class. Georgia Tech transfer [autotag]Jordan Domineck[/autotag] will also help Jackson in the pass rush. In the secondary, the staff landed LSU corner transfer [autotag]Dwight McGlothern[/autotag] and Georgia safety [autotag]Latavious Brini[/autotag].

The Razorbacks also have to replace three members of the backfield, but have players to step up, such as Simeon Blair, Jalen Catalon, and Keuan Parker, who all have playing experience.

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Michigan State football offers Georgia Tech transfer DE Jordan Domineck

Michigan State football is the latest big-time program to show interest in Georgia Tech transfer defensive end Jordan Domineck

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Michigan State football is the latest big-time program to show interest in Georgia Tech transfer defensive end Jordan Domineck.

Domineck announced on Wednesday that he’s received a scholarship offer from the Spartans. He entered the transfer portal last week after three years at Georgia Tech.

Domineck led Georgia Tech in sacks the past two seasons, and appeared in 31 career games for the Yellow Jackets. He’s also received scholarship offers from Nebraska, Kansas, Penn State, Auburn, Indiana, Iowa State, Arkansas and numerous group of five programs.