Ty’Kieast Crawford has a little old-school and a little new-school to him.
At 6-foot-5 and 347 pounds, Crawford, a junior on the Arkansas offensive line, doesn’t quite stake claim to being the biggest player on the Hogs front, but he’s not far from it. The era of size-over-all on football offensive lines has passed a bit as teams shifted more to the run-pass-option game, which requires blocker who are fleet of foot.
But don’t think for a second that Crawford can’t move. It’s his footwork that has made him Arkansas’ No. 1 reserve on the line this fall. And not just at one position, but four.
“I can play any position they want me to play,” Crawford said. “‘ll go out there and do it for them,” Crawford said. “I’ll be on any side they want me to. I’m comfortable. I get in there and do my job. Do my assignment. That’s it.”
The Texas native worked his way into a reserve spot last year, but with a couple players ahead of him in the hierarchy, he didn’t see the field often. But as the top back-up this year, he’s likely to get plenty of time. Whether it’s swapping in on series to give guys a break – something that is also more common now than it used to be – or filling in for an injured player, Crawford should have plenty of opportunity to prep himself for a starting role next year.
His teammates know he can do it. Dalton Wagner, a three-year starter at tackle, sees it every day.
“He’s taken a much more veteran mentality approach to this stuff,” Wagner said. “He’s not going into it, I don’t know, not lackadaisical, but he’s going into it with a lot more fire than he had before. And intent. Yeah, that’s a better word for it. Intent. And he’s done a really great job all camp so far.”