FAYETTEVILLE -- The University of Arkansas football team has selected three defensive standouts and two offensive starters as team captains, including one repeat selection.
Quarterback KJ Jefferson and offensive tackle Myron Cunningham were the picks on offense, while linebacker Grant Morgan and defensive backs Jalen Catalon and Joe Foucha were the defensive selections.
The captains were announced by Coach Sam Pittman during Saturday's mock game at Reynolds Razorback Stadium.
Morgan served as a team captain in 2020, while Cunningham was a captain for the final two games after tailback Rakeem Boyd opted out last season. Morgan and Cunningham are both seniors who accepted the extra year of eligibility extended by the NCAA due to the coronavirus pandemic.
Foucha is a fourth-year senior, while Catalon and Jefferson are both redshirt sophomores.
Morgan, of Greenwood, is the only Arkansas native among the selections, a distinction he also held in 2020.
Catalon is from Mansfield, Texas; Jefferson is from Sardis, Miss.; Foucha hails from New Orleans; and Cunningham is from Warren, Ohio.
The Razorbacks conducted their mock game Saturday morning, finishing about noon. Arkansas will kick off the season Saturday at 1 p.m. against former Southwest Conference rival Rice at Reynolds Razorback Stadium.
Pitt & Sandy
Coach Sam Pittman has recorded a public service announcement for the Arkansas Department of Human Services with Razorback superfan Canaan Sandy.
In the spot, Sandy asks Pittman for a hug and Pittman says, "Wait, are you vaccinated?" to which Sandy replies, "Yes sir, coach."
Pittman replies that he is also vaccinated and encourages fans to "Be a MVP in your community" and take the vaccination.
Towers out
Freshman linebacker JT Towers has been given an indefinite suspension from the team, sources have told the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette.
Towers, a redshirt freshman who finished his prep career at Joe T. Robinson in Little Rock, has been practicing with a green no-contact jersey for the past week.
The 6-4, 210-pounder who redshirted while not seeing action in 2020 has not cracked the three deep on the defensive depth chart.
Shot take
Coach Sam Pittman said last week the Razorback roster was over 91% vaccinated for covid-19, and he hopes the number will go up.
"That's not good enough," he said on his "Sam Pittman Live" radio show. "We need to get to 100. ... I think the FDA passing the Pfizer [shot] maybe is going to help us get the rest of them. It's a scary thing. But I'm proud of where we are.
"Once the SEC came out and said, 'Look, we're not going to push back games' like they did last year. ... I basically took what the SEC told us to our kids, and at the time we were about 70 vaccinated, at least the first shot. And then by the next three days we were well over 100 at that point. It tells you a little about our guys. They just want to play. They love the game."
Opposing QBs
Multiple reports on Saturday declared redshirt freshman Hudson Card has won the starting quarterback job at Texas. Card beat out redshirt junior Casey Thompson, who opened camp taking more of the first-team reps.
According to Horns 247, Texas Coach Steve Sarkisian informed the players of his decision after a walk-through practice Friday and said both would play in the Sept. 4 opener against Louisiana-Lafayette.
The Longhorns face Arkansas at Reynolds Razorback Stadium on Sept. 11.
Meanwhile, Rice has not named its starter between top contenders Wiley Green (6-3, 211) and Luke McCaffrey (6-2, 200), a transfer from Nebraska. Jovani Johnson, a 6-3, 215-pound redshirt freshman from Conway with two career starts, is 10-of-14 passing.
J. Diesel White
John David White, a redshirt sophomore receiver from Little Rock, played in the final two games in 2019 as part of a package called "Diesel" by the previous coaching staff.
The nickname has stuck.
"Diesel's the man," senior receiver De'Vion Warren said. "John David White is just a person that you come in every day, and he's that one person you can look at, and you just laugh and get excited, because he's always going to bring that energy.
"He's always going to motivate you, and he's always going to be the person that when you look and say, 'Oh, I'm not feeling it,' he walks by and he's always happy and is always ready to work. He's one of those guys that makes sure the energy goes up every time you see him."
Junior receiver Trey Knox also praised White.
"He can run for miles," Knox said. "That's the biggest thing I love about him. The boy never gets tired. He's just a great teammate, a down-to-earth guy. He wants to be around everybody. Just a good friend and an incredibly hard worker. He works his tail off day in and day out."
White, a walk-on, had two catches for 27 yards in 2019. He played in eight games last season but didn't have a reception. He played 50 snaps on offense and special teams.
Bowl bummer
Receiver Jaquayln Crawford didn't play in any of the Razorbacks' games last season after transferring from Oklahoma. He worked on the scout team all season before being cleared to participate in practices for the Texas Bowl against TCU.
The game was canceled two days before it was scheduled to be played due to a covid-19 outbreak involving the Horned Frogs.
"I mean, it was a bummer just because of how it happened," Crawford said. "I got cleared early in the week so I got to practice with the team for a couple of practices. I was feeling good, starting to get back in that game mode. I was excited to get out there and just showcase what I could do and bring to this offense."
The Razorbacks were preparing to board team buses for the airport when the announcement came the bowl had been canceled.
"It was just kind of weird how it happened, us so close to leaving for the bowl game," Crawford said. "But everything happens for a reason. I don't look at it as a bad thing. Obviously, I wish I could have gotten to play but it was out of our control."