LITTLE ROCK, Ark. – Arkansas Head Football Coach Ryan Silverfield made his first appearance at the Little Rock Rotary Club on Tuesday.

‘It’s absolutely important when I first had my very first press conference, I said I’d love to make it to every single city and meet all the great fans and the great support throughout the entire state because we understand what the program means to the entire state,” Silverfield said.

In his speech, Silverfield talked about how he’s building an “All-In” culture in the program since taking the job in December.

Silverfield says that the center of that is accountability. One of his first moves was asking players to hang photos in their lockers of loved ones who sacrificed so they could play college football. He shared how junior wide receiver CJ Brown’s “why” is his family, specifically his father, who passed away before the season began.

“Every day CJ goes to his locker, he gets to see a picture of his father and a picture of his family that he knows he worked hard to do what he’s supposed to do, he promised his mom, and he promised his dad that he’d get a college degree.”

Another culture shift this year is through time management, as he’s even changed the clocks in the facility.

“We tell our players all the time have a sense of urgency. In fact, I replaced all the clocks in the entire football building with a bunch of hands that say ‘Now’ on them,” Silverfield said. “The time is now, having a sense of urgency in everything we do.”

He also discussed the quarterback battle that he and Offensive Coordinator Tim Cramsey have on their hands this spring.

The possible options include Redshirt sophomore quarterback KJ Jackson, Redshirt freshman AJ Hill, Redshirt senior Angelo State Transfer Braeden Fuller, and Walk-on redshirt freshman Cade Trotter.

“It’s a true competition, and in fact, every position that we’ve talked about, even at defensive end with Quincy Rhodes Jr. every position is a complete battle,” Silverfield said. “It’s a competitive battle all the way through August to figure out what we have. Everyone wants to talk about the quarterback position, and like coach Cramsey said, we are going to let these guys battle it out, and the good news is…not in any position we like who we have what we have obviously, spring football will be a great indicator.”

One of the most anticipated opportunities for fans to gauge this year’s team’s potential will come during spring practice. Silverfield shared his expectations for the spring and outlined what he’s looking to see from this year’s group as they begin laying the foundation for the season ahead.

“Seeing what we have a lot of times, just getting that feel for seeing the guys move around in the morning workouts and what they do in weight lifting, and have an understanding of how they understand the scheme,” Silverfield said. “But it means a lot different when he puts the pads on, so just getting a feel for it right. We’re going to install basics, and throughout the spring we’ll get 15 practices, including a spring game, which we announced that we are doing, but really want to see them compete, who can step up, who can stand out, and what ultimately we have.”

Spring practices for the Razorbacks will start Sunday, March 15.

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