10 Things to Know – Georgia
Arkansas opens the 2020 season and the Sam Pittman era by welcoming No. 4 Georgia to Donald W. Reynolds Razorback Stadium for a 3 p.m. tilt on Saturday, Sept. 26. The game will be broadcast on SEC Network and the ESPN app.
10 Things to Know Before Kickoff
1. – The quartet of senior RB Rakeem Boyd, junior WR Mike Woods and sophomore WRs Treylon Burks and Trey Knox combined for 2,967 all-purpose yards last season, nearly 60% of the 2019 Razorbacks total yardage. Overall, Arkansas returns approximately 81% of its all-purpose yards from last season.
2. – Graduate transfer QB Feleipe Franks is slated to start behind center when the Razorback offense takes the field against the Bulldogs. The veteran is no stranger to the SEC after spending 2017-19 as Florida’s starting signal caller, where he guided the 2018 Gators to a No. 6 final ranking in the USA Today Coaches’ Poll and a 41-15 Chick Fil-A Peach Bowl victory over No. 7 Michigan. Franks played in 28 games and made 25 starts for the Gators, registering 4,593 passing yards with 37 touchdowns to 17 interceptions and a 59.1% completion percentage (354-for-599). In addition, the Crawfordsville, Fla. product ran for 438 yards and eight scores. Franks was Florida’s starting quarterback the first three games last season but missed the remainder of the year due to injury.
3. – Senior RB Rakeem Boyd is back for his third season on the Hill after leading the team in rushing each of the last two seasons. Last year, he carried the ball 184 times for 1,133 yards and eight touchdowns while also hauling in 19 receptions for 160 yards. The Houston, Texas native has run for 100+ yards in a game eight times during his Razorback career, making him one of just 16 backs in school history to do so. Boyd ranked fourth in the SEC and 27th nationally averaging 94.4 yards per game; in addition, his 6.4 yards per carry ranked ninth in the conference. On just eight carries, he rushed for a career-best 185 yards against Western Kentucky, averaging 23.1 yards per attempt, including two touchdown runs of 76 and 86 yards with the latter being a career-long.
4. – Arkansas is welcoming two new transfer additions on the defensive line to bolster its front. JUCO transfer Julius Coates comes from East Mississippi CC where he racked up 30 tackles, 9.0 tackles for loss and 6.0 sacks last season. Graduate transfer Xavier Kelly joins the fold from Clemson where he won two National Championships and four ACC Championships, while durable senior Jonathan Marshall returns after missing just one game in the last four years. Marshall finished third on the team in 2019 making 4.5 tackles for loss.
5. – Razorback players selected four seniors in Boyd, Franks, Marshall and LB Grant Morgan to serve as team captains for the 2020 campaign.