The first day of practice is always a treat. First order of business is to learn the numbers of any new players.
As I scanned the roster, I stumbled when I got to the 18s. There are four on the Arkansas roster with that jersey number. It was a first for me.
I can imagine situations with all four playing in a game, too. Jeremy Patton is the starting tight end; Blake Johnson is the returnee at punter; Jack Lindsey holds for kicks; and true freshman Myles Mason could make the travel squad as a special teams cover man and backup free safety.
The confusion stopped when Patton trotted onto the field. He is the standout among the 18s. He may be the best-looking athlete on the field.
At 6-4 and 253 pounds, the senior tight end is a superb specimen. He’s athletic and equipped for his position with wonderful long arms that have that chiseled look of a weight lifter.
Patton was the nation’s top junior college tight end two years ago when assistant coach Barry Lunney Jr. found him at Arizona Western Junior College.
The only problem for Patton was that he didn’t arrive on campus until just before fall camp last year. He wasn’t around for summer lifting and was behind in conditioning. He played catch-up all season, both in the playbook and in making his body look like an SEC player.
Nine of his 11 catches last season came in the month of November.
Now Patton is every bit what Lunney coveted in recruiting. His muscles ripple and are in all the right places. He’s not a whole lot heavier, but it’s definitely a different physique. He’s probably one of the nation’s best tight ends, just as advertised when the Hogs got his signature from junior college.
“I looked sloppy when I got here last year,” Patton said. “All I was eating when I got here was fast food. Not anymore.”
Patton had to fall out of love with a certain fried chicken chain. He said strength and conditioning coach Trumain Carroll got him right on his nutrition.
“I’d lifted before when I got here, but more in high school,” he said. “I give a shout out to my high school strength coach, Adam Lane. He helped me.
“But in junior college, we didn’t have a weight room for football. There was a building that the entire campus — every student — could use. It was kind of like our HPER building here, but not as good. You could lift, but it might be crowded.”
Patton did get some playing time last year, mostly because the Hogs used a system with two tight ends.
“I came here because they ran a pro system,” Patton said. “And, they did use two a lot.
“But what I’ve found out about the new offense this year, the tight end is one of the featured players. It’s about getting matchups, and the tight end is sometimes the player getting set up with matchups.”
Patton was the first player into the interview room after practice in the first week of camp. He was in a first-team rotation with Austin Cantrell until he suffered an ankle bruise in week two. He should be available by the time the opener with Eastern Illinois arrives Sept. 1. He’s going to be a major asset in the new Chad Morris offense.
“This is a fun offense for the tight ends,” he said. “There’s a lot to learn because you move to a different spot.”
For example, Patton said he plays four different positions.
“I was in the backfield, on the line, in the slot and split wide,” he said of a workout early in camp. “We might be running the same play, but you might be in a different spot from one snap to the next, and it’s about getting you a match-up. I love it. You have a chance to show your versatility.
“I had to learn a lot last year in the pro system, and it took a while for me to get comfortable. First, I had to get in shape.”
No matter what kind of shape Patton thought he was in last year, he’s learned that he wasn’t close to his full potential. He’s there now.
“It’s crazy how much I’ve improved,” he said. “The weight room here is crazy. I think it’s the longest room in the country.
“The main thing, I finally learned what nutrition is about. I cut out that fried chicken. I wasn’t used to seeing so much fried foods, and I went crazy on it when I got here. It’s cut.”
It’s helped his endurance. The Hogs will rotate several tight ends in their up-tempo offense, but Patton thinks he’ll be fine no matter what happens.
“I feel like I can go for awhile,” he said. “Now we will change it up and bring in others. We’ve got good depth at the tight end position.”
Patton raved about the others at his position, including Cheyenne O’Grady, Grayson Gunter and Cantrell. All have changed their body to fit the system.
“I think you’ll see that Cheyenne has really improved his blocking, too,” Patton said. “He was all right as a blocker, but he’s come a long way. Cheyenne is freak-like. His blocking is there now. I’ve seen him take things more serious. He gets it.”
Patton gets what the Hogs are trying to do in the Morris offense. He loves the run-pass options in the heart of the system with zone reads, too.
“That’s what we are, a spread with zone reads,” he said. “There are a lot of adjustments for the quarterback on every play. I love that RPO.
“We have unbelievable versatility. Every called run has options attached.
It’s impossible for the defense to be right.”
The summer workouts have produced efficient play by he offense.
“We are all on the same page,” he said. “What we did in the spring was put it in, then in the summer we got the timing right.”
Now it’s time to put on the full pads. The Hogs added shoulder pads on Monday. They’ll add full pads in the next two days.
“That’s when football starts, really,” he said. “Coach Lunney said what we’ve done so far is just practice in underwear.”
Stripped down to a jersey and shorts, that exposes those that have not worked hard in the summer. The fat shows. There have not been many that had any fat.
“We look good, don’t we?” Patton said. “You see someone like Brian Wallace. He’s incredible. And, it’s not just the way he looks.”
That was in reference to the starting right tackle. Wallace has lost around 20 pounds. On the other side, freshman left tackle Dalton Wagner has added 25 pounds of good weight after losing around 50 pounds from when he first reported 14 months ago. Patton lines up next to them and likes what he sees.
“Those two, Brian and Dalton, they look different,” Patton said. “Brian is different in his knowledge of the offense, too. He struggled last year, but he knows all of our plays. He looks great.”
So does Jeremy Patton. He’s not just the best looking of the 18s. He may be one of the nation’s best-looking tight ends.