Heading into his sixth season leading the Arkansas football program, Sam Pittman has once again been tasked with rebuilding his roster via the transfer portal.
The Razorbacks have seen 24 scholarship players — including numerous significant contributors — leave the team, but they’re actively working on replacing them and are up 14 public commitments from transfers.
Perhaps the highlight of Arkansas’ early portal haul has been what it’s done up front with the offensive line. That was a major key for Pittman and it was the first position he brought up when asked about the newcomers Monday afternoon.
He believes the four offensive line transfers have “really enhanced” the Razorbacks’ 2025 roster, which was a necessity with them losing all three of their interior starters to other Power Four programs.
They haven’t exactly replaced Joshua Braun (Kentucky), Addison Nichols (SMU) and Patrick Kutas (Ole Miss) man-for-man, though. Instead, three of the four incoming players are viewed as tackles, with the other being a center.
Figuring out exactly where they fit in with Arkansas’ two current tackles — Fernando Carmona and E’Marion Harris — will be a task for spring ball.
“I think the old philosophy — which was mine — was to get big (linemen), and if they didn’t have quite the feet or couldn’t handle space, you move them in to guard,” Pittman said. “We’ll just have to look to get our five best on the field at the same time. I do like the guys that we went out in the portal and have signed to this point. I think they’ll help us.”
The Razorbacks aren’t done, either. Pittman said he’d like to add one more — either a big tackle or someone capable of playing center. That player will likely be a depth piece, with the four current additions being the most likely to actually contribute in 2025.
Is Pittman right in his assessment that Arkansas has “enhanced” its offensive line via the transfer portal? Let’s take a closer look…
Arkansas Football OL Additions
Proven Starters
- Caden Kitler — UCF
- Corey Robinson II — Georgia Tech
The four-man transfer portal haul can be split into two groups; the first entails those coming to Arkansas with extensive experience at the Power Four level.
Caden Kitler (6-3, 295) is the only transfer lineman who can be viewed as a straight-up replacement for one of the Razorbacks’ departing starters, as he was the starting center at UCF. He is expected to fill in for Addison Nichols.
After missing the Cincinnati game with an injury, Kitler didn’t miss a single snap over the final six weeks of the season and, according to Knights247, “the offensive play took a notable step up for the Knights when he returned.”
He finished with a 68.2 Pro Football Focus grade, which was a tick below Nichols’ 69.4 mark, but Kitler was better as a pass blocker (77.7 vs. 76.4). He is also coming to Fayetteville as a true center, while Nichols was a converted guard — and it showed with some shaky snaps throughout the season.
At least on paper, there doesn’t seem to be much of a drop-off from Nichols to Kitler. You could even make a case for this being a slight upgrade when you throw in the snapping aspect.
The other starter Arkansas has landed is Corey Robinson II, who started 24 games over the last three years at Georgia Tech. Originally a low three-star recruit who signed with Kansas out of high school, he steadily improved after joining the Yellowjackets.
As a full-time starter as a redshirt freshman in 2022, he earned a 49.2 PFF grade. He battled injuries over the next two seasons, but saw his grade tick up to 56.4 on 374 snaps in 2023 and then to 67.9 on 539 snaps this past season. Robinson actually started Georgia Tech’s final seven games, but did split time with a younger player over the last four.
Included in his solid grade in 2024 was an elite 91.2 pass-blocking grade on 278 pass blocking snaps. That is the top mark among 250 FBS offensive tackles who played at least 250 such snaps.
Considering he has only one year of eligibility remaining, Robinson is as close to a sure starter as there is out of the transfer portal. The only problem? All but eight of his 1,648 career snaps were at left tackle.
That’s the same position as Fernando Carmona, last year’s portal gem who generated some NFL Draft buzz heading into the year and has already announced he’s returning for another year at Arkansas.
Carmona’s loyalty and status as a team leader make it unlikely for him to be supplanted by a newcomer – especially one who’s been injury-prone and had to split reps late in the year – so perhaps Robinson could flip over to the right side.
That’s where E’Marion Harris started the final six games of the season for Arkansas. He’s slated to be back as a redshirt junior, but was the Razorbacks’ lowest graded offensive lineman at 55.0, according to PFF. He particularly struggled as a pass blocker on the edge, with those grades falling off after taking over at right tackle.
Perhaps the addition of Robinson would allow him to slide back inside the guard, where he showed enough promise that the coaching staff decided he was one of the top five offensive linemen even when Patrick Kutas returned, forcing Keyshawn Blackstock out of the starting lineup.
That would give Arkansas numerous options at the guard spots vacated by Kutas and Joshua Braun – Harris, Blackstock (will start at right guard in the Liberty Bowl), Kobe Branham (who’ll start at left guard) and JUCO signee Bubba Craig chief among them.
(There’s also the possibility of Carmona, who stands at 6-foot-5, 322 pounds, moving inside to guard – a switch that might be necessary for the Razorbacks to get their best five linemen on the field together.)
What is clear with both experienced transfers is they address a major issue on this year’s team: pass protection. The Razorbacks weren’t as bad as they were in 2023, but they still allowed 34 sacks. Granted, some of those weren’t on the offensive line, but that is tied for 110th nationally.
Kitler and Robinson each graded out very well in that area, according to PFF, and it stands to reason they’ll help Arkansas reduce that number in 2025, either by their own blocking or the domino effect they cause on the offensive line.
Promising Prospects
- Kavion Broussard — Ole Miss
- Jac’Qawn McRoy — Oregon
The other group consists of two promising offensive linemen who’ve yet to play a snap in college, as they were true freshmen on College Football Playoff contenders in 2024.
Jac’Qawn McRoy is the headliner and a name Arkansas football fans may remember because the Razorbacks were heavily involved in his recruitment out of Clay-Chalkville High in Pinson, Ala. He even took an official visit to Fayetteville before signing with Oregon.
Considered a top-100 recruit by both 247Sports (No. 95) and ESPN (No. 55), McRoy is a massive human. Oregon’s roster listed him at 6-foot-8, 375 pounds. At that size, he will be a tackle for the Razorbacks.
Despite his recruiting rankings, it would be unwise to pencil him in as a starter. That would require him beating out Fernando Carmona and/or Corey Robinson II, and possibly also E’Marion Harris or Keyshawn Blackstock. That’s a big ask for a guy who’s never played a down in college.
Instead, the most likely scenario is that he develops for another year and then becomes a starter as a redshirt sophomore in 2026, when both Carmona and Robinson will be out of eligibility. That still makes McRoy a big-time get because, as things stood before, walk-on Aaron Smith was the left tackle waiting in the wings. Now he’ll get a season in the system under his belt before being thrown into the fire.
Depth is also why Kavion Broussard was a nice pickup for Arkansas. He wasn’t recruited by the Razorbacks out of Zachary High in Louisiana, but did turn down the likes of Florida State, Miami (Fla.), TCU and Missouri to sign with Ole Miss. A four-star recruit on ESPN, Broussard’s 0.8794 rating in the 247Sports Composite would have made him the Razorbacks’ top offensive line signee in 2024 or 2025.
Listed at 6-foot-6, 290 pounds on the Rebels’ roster, he is a large body who could play tackle or guard. Either way, the 2025 season will likely be a developmental year for him and set him up to contribute the following year, as a redshirt sophomore.
Who’s Next Out of the Transfer Portal?
Sam Pittman mentioned his desire to add one more offensive lineman out of the transfer portal and it seems like he already has his eye on one in the Big Ten.
According to HawgBeat and On3, the Razorbacks are set to host Maryland transfer Marcus Dumervil for an official visit next month.
The nephew of Pro Bowler Elvis Dumervil, who played for Bobby Petrino at Louisville, he began his career at LSU, but played sparingly from 2020-22. His limited role continued with the Terrapins last year, but he did make three starts and play 262 snaps this season.
Most of that action came at left tackle, where he’s played 283 career snaps, but he also has experience at right tackle (47 snaps), right guard (42 snaps) and as a blocking tight end (38 snaps).
That kind of flexibility could make him a replacement for Joe More, who is out of eligibility after the Liberty Bowl. A former FCS standout at Richmond, he spent one year at Syracuse before coming to Arkansas and being a versatile backup capable of playing multiple positions.
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More coverage of Arkansas football and the transfer portal from BoAS…
