Arkansas extended an unfortunate streak when it received a triple dose of bad news Friday with Luke Hasz, Joshua Braun and Jaylon Braxton entering the transfer portal.
Following in the footsteps of wide receiver Isaiah Sategna and offensive lineman Patrick Kutas, who made similar decisions on Wednesday and Thursday, respectively, the Razorbacks have now lost offensive starters on three straight days.
Hasz, the star tight end, made the announcement himself via Twitter, while Braun’s departure was reported by On3 and 247Sports.
(UPDATE: Not long after the initial report of Braun entering the transfer portal, 247Sports reported he had withdrawn his name. As a graduate transfer, he was eligible to go ahead and enter. However, HawgBeat is reporting he still plans to enter on Monday, when it opens up to all players.)
“Through prayer and conversations with my fiancé, parents and God, I have decided to enter the transfer portal,” Hasz wrote. “I can not thank Coach Pittman and Coach Turner enough. Arkansas will forever hold a place in my heart!”
In interviews following Arkansas’ loss to Missouri, Braun told reporters that he was excited to play in the upcoming bowl game.
“For me personally, it’s a huge deal,” Braun said. “I’ve never won a bowl game, so that’s definitely going to be on my mind as we prepare. It’s what every team starts the season as their goal. And we’re thankful and we’re grateful that we get the opportunity to go play in a bowl. Ultimately, that’s not the end goal, but it’s the goal for us right now.”
It apparently wasn’t that big of a goal, though.
Throw in Andrew Armstrong, the SEC’s leading receiver, opting out to focus on the NFL Draft, the Razorbacks are now down five offensive starters for their yet-to-be-revealed bowl game. On the other side of the ball, they’ll be without defensive linemen Landon Jackson and Eric Gregory, who have also opted out. Defensive end Nico Davillier, another starter, announced his plans to transfer on Friday, as well.
With eight total starters not playing in the bowl, Arkansas football coach Sam Pittman might be feeling a bit like John Calipari was back in April, when the Hall of Fame coach famously told reporters and fans, “I met with the team. There is no team.”
Of course, this is becoming the norm in college football for teams playing in bowl games outside of the College Football Playoff.
Just two years ago, the Razorbacks went into the Liberty Bowl without wide receivers Jadon Haselwood (NFL Draft) and Ketron Jackson Jr. (transfer portal), offensive lineman Ricky Stromberg (NFL Draft), tight end Trey Knox (transfer portal), linebacker Drew Sanders (NFL Draft) and defensive tackle Isaiah Nichols (transfer portal) — all of whom had been starters.
Arkansas didn’t reach the postseason last year, when it went 4-8, but still saw seven starters hit the transfer portal: quarterback KJ Jefferson, running back Rocket Sanders, offensive tackles Devon Manuel and Andrew Chamblee, defensive back Lorando Johnson, and linebackers Jaheim Thomas and Chris Paul Jr.
Luke Hasz to the Transfer Portal
From a talent and potential perspective, Luke Hasz immediately becomes Arkansas’ most notable loss to the transfer portal this offseason — and perhaps one of the biggest “what if” cases in recent memory.
A four-star recruit who was once considered the top tight end in the 2023 class, the Bixby, Okla., product originally committed to the Sooners, but backed off that pledge when Lincoln Riley left to take the USC job. That opened the door for Arkansas to swoop in and land him.
The Razorbacks had to hold off a strong push by Nick Saban and Alabama late in the process, but Hasz stuck with them.
It was immediately clear that Hasz was the best tight end on the roster, even as a true freshman, and he was rewarded with a spot in the starting lineup from Day 1. He got off to a bit of a slow start, catching only five total passes for 45 yards against Western Carolina and Kent State, before taking his game to another level against Power Five competition.
Hasz reeled in four passes for 78 yards and a touchdown against BYU and then racked up 116 yards and two more scores on six receptions against LSU. He was well on his way to a spot on the SEC All-Freshman Team – if not a Freshman All-America nod – but went down with a broken clavicle on the opening drive of the fifth game of the season.
With new offensive coordinator Bobby Petrino calling the plays, many expected Hasz to explode onto the national scene in 2024, especially given his past success with tight ends like D.J. Williams and Chris Gragg.
Unfortunately, that breakthrough never materialized – and likely played a role in his decision to enter the transfer portal.
While he did play through a back injury for part of the year, Hasz never seemed to be a focal point of the offense. Despite Pittman routinely saying they needed to get him the ball more, he finished the year with only 26 receptions for 324 yards and four touchdowns.
Another question raised by Hasz’s departure has to do with the future of his twin brother, Dylan Hasz, a safety for the Razorbacks. Although the other Hasz has hardly played on defense, he’s been a key contributor on special teams the last two years.
Joshua Braun to the Transfer Portal
Back in the summer of 2019, Joshua Braun was a four-star recruit at Suwannee High School in Live Oak, Fla., and committed to what was becoming a powerhouse offensive line at Georgia.
However, that was before his position coach, Sam Pittman, left the Bulldogs to become the head coach at Arkansas. When that happened, he opted to stay close to home and sign with Florida.
After three seasons with the Gators, though, Braun hit the transfer portal and Pittman used it as an opportunity to recruit him once again. This time he ended up actually playing for the longtime offensive line coach.
Over the last two years, Braun was a fixture up front for the Razorbacks. Starting all 24 games, all but one which were at right guard, he played a total of 1,625 snaps.
Last year, he earned a 70.7 grade from Pro Football Focus and was a second-team All-SEC selection by the AP. In 2024, he still posted a 69.8 overall mark.
While it was never a certainty that he’d return as a sixth-year super senior in 2025, it is a bit of a surprise that Braun opted to enter the transfer portal again.
Not only did he express excitement about playing in the upcoming bowl game just last Saturday, but Pittman openly discussed his desire to try to convince him to come back. It seemed like the decision would boil down to another year at Arkansas or giving the NFL a shot, but he has taken the third option and will finish his career elsewhere.
What Hasz’s Departure Means for Arkansas Football
Before the 2024 season, an argument could have been made that tight end was Arkansas’ deepest position on the team.
Luke Hasz was viewed as an All-SEC candidate, Ty Washington flashed in limited opportunities before getting hurt the season before and Var’keyes Gumms appeared to turn a corner during the preseason, looking much more like the guy who earned Freshman All-America honors at North Texas.
Fast forward four months and all three of those players are gone. In addition to Hasz hitting the portal, Washington and Gumms were dismissed from the team during the season. They are also expected to transfer elsewhere to continue their careers.
The only scholarship tight ends left are Andreas Paaske and Shamar Easter, but it’s worth noting that walk-on Maddox Lassiter has carved out a role for himself and actually played more than Easter in 2024.
In the short-term, those three players will likely be asked to hold down the fort in the bowl game. Paaske and Lassiter are more blocking-oriented tight ends, but the former caught two touchdowns at Mississippi State and the latter got open in the end zone against Louisiana Tech only to be overthrown.
Easter might be the biggest mystery of the group. A four-star prospect out of Ashdown, he was a highly coveted recruit, but has hardly played in two years at Arkansas. Earlier this season, Pittman said he was probably still a year away from contributing.
“He is going to get some looks on special teams a little bit this week,” Pittman said about Easter on Oct. 30, following the dismissal of Washington and Gumms. “We like where he’s going, how he’s developing, but probably will take another year in the weight room and in spring ball, and we feel like he’ll be a fine player for us.”
Being without Hasz in the bowl game, though, could speed up that timeline. There’s also a chance walk-on Kyle Thompson gets work at fullback if Lassiter takes on a larger role at tight end. Another thing to consider is the use of freshman offensive lineman Kobe Branham as a sixth lineman/blocking tight end, but he may be preoccupied (see below).
More of them could end up entering the transfer portal, but all four tight ends currently on the roster — including walk-on Spencer Henlee — are eligible to return in 2025.
There’s a good chance Lassiter gets put on scholarship. Couple that with the signing of tight end Gavin Garretson and that’d put the Razorbacks at four scholarship players at the position.
Considering none of them are particularly proven pass catchers, it stands to reason that Arkansas would target such a tight end in the transfer portal this offseason.
What Braun’s Departure Means for Arkansas Football
The Razorbacks would have to replace both of their starting guards in 2025 if Joshua Braun joins Patrick Kutas in deciding to enter the transfer portal. They’ll have to do it relatively quickly, too, because neither is expected to play in the upcoming bowl game.
Even if Braun does ultimately decide to stay in the transfer portal, Arkansas still has Keyshawn Blackstock. The Michigan State transfer spent the first half of the season as the starting right tackle before getting moved inside. He started at left guard against LSU and Louisiana Tech, but was replaced by Kutas for the other four games in the back half of the schedule.
He could return to the starting lineup in the bowl game and next year, but that only fixes half of the problem. Arkansas would still have one more guard to fill.
For the bowl game, the Razorbacks could go ahead and treat it as an audition for Kobe Branham. The Fort Smith Southside product redshirted this year, but got a handful of snaps as a sixth lineman in heavy sets down the stretch.
“For him to get out there as a freshman and in key situations — you’re looking at goal line, basically, what he’s playing right now — is a huge compliment to him,” Pittman said on Nov. 25. “I fully expect he battles for a starting position in spring ball. I do. I think he’s special. I think he was well coached in high school, but he’s just a special kid and I expect him to battle in there at one of those guard spots this spring.”
Similar to Easter, losing both Kutas and Braun to the transfer portal would speed up that timeline for Branham.
Other options for the bowl game include redshirt freshman Luke Brown, if he’s healthy, as well as walk-on redshirt sophomore Brooks Edmonson, who took a snap at center when Addison Nichols was shaken up against Louisiana Tech.
Amaury Wiggins has previously taken second-team reps at guard, but he was one of the first players to announce his intention to enter the transfer portal. Super senior Ty’Kieast Crawford is still on the team and has starting experience, but he has been relegated to scout team duty and hasn’t made the travel roster.
Something else the Razorbacks could do is move E’Marion Harris back inside and give Joe More a look at right tackle. He’s listed as the backup on the depth chart, but has appeared to be more of a backup center based on pregame warmups.
Looking ahead to 2025, it’s a safe bet Arkansas will once again target potential offensive line starters in the transfer portal.
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Jaylon Braxton Enters the Portal
In the past, the majority of exiting Arkansas football transfers have landed at inferior program or, at best, made lateral moves. Take Rocket Sanders to South Carolina or KJ Jefferson to UCF as examples of the latter.
But the early exodus of star players like Luke Hasz and Jaylon Braxton in the 2024 portal season suggests that something different could be unfolding in the coming weeks. That’s how DJ Williams sees it, anyway.
More here:
Check out how the 2025 Arkansas football roster looks after the latest round of transfer portal announcements:
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