Three changes Arkansas football's offense must make under new coordinator Kenny Guiton
Arkansas football coach Sam Pittman said coaches had cut about 30 percent of their offensive playbook by Monday's practice.
But subtractions can't be the only changes.
Arkansas will usher in a new era on offense Saturday when it hits the road to face Florida, receivers-turned-quarterbacks coach Kenny Guiton calling plays for the very first time.
Guiton takes the reins after the dismissal of Dan Enos, who lasted just eight games as offensive coordinator. Enos leaves behind an offense that ranks 122nd in yards per game.
Guiton faces an uphill task trying to rejuvenate quarterback KJ Jefferson and a lifeless offensive line, but there are a few corrections that can be ushered in as soon as this weekend when the Razorbacks face the Gators.
Here are three must-see changes for the Arkansas offense under Guiton.
Bring back the tempo
A staple of the Kendal Briles scheme, Guiton must utilize a faster pace with the Arkansas offense. A high-tempo approach brought out the best of Jefferson, and the Razorbacks' quarterback has looked like a shell of himself this year without that speed.
Under Dan Enos, there wasn't any emphasis on playing up-tempo until the Ole Miss game. Even then, it felt more like a changeup than a dedicated philosophy.
On Monday, Sam Pittman said Arkansas had eliminated about 30 percent of its offensive playbook, with a change in pace a key motivating factor.
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"I want to be able to do it that everybody’s on the same page, blocking the right guys and playing as fast as we possibly can with the ability to have that tempo and all those type things," he said.
The tempo could be an easy way to get a non-existent running game going for the Razorbacks by taking advantage of defenses on their heels and making reads easier for Jefferson and the stable of Arkansas running backs.
A hard cap on long passing plays
The deep ball was a staple of Jefferson's career coming into this season, but the Razorbacks are struggling protecting their quarterback and getting wide receivers open in 2023. Long-developing passes off play action have led to sacks more often than completions, yet Enos continued to try and find success on these types of plays.
That stubbornness played a part in his eventual firing, and it must be eliminated under Guiton.
A couple long shots should be sprinkled in to keep opposing defenses alert, but Arkansas doesn't have the personnel this season to find consistent success on downfield throws. Short, quick passes to Arkansas' best playmakers are the best options for this offense.
More passes for Ty Washington and Isaiah Sategna
Washington began the season listed as the fourth-string tight end on the Arkansas depth chart, but the redshirt freshman has emerged as the Razorbacks' starter after Luke Hasz suffered a broken collarbone against Texas A&M.
Since that loss to the Aggies, the Arkansas offense has looked its best when Washington is involved. The tight end only has 10 targets this season, but he has nine catches for 133 yards and two touchdowns.
Most of that production came against Ole Miss, and Washington only received three combined targets in ensuing games against Alabama and Mississippi State.
Sategna, on the other hand, hasn't found much success this season. He was a spring and fall darling who made thrived off tunnel screens and passes across the middle that he could turn into big plays. The four-star wide receiver out of Fayetteville High School is the highest-ranked wide receiver recruit on the Arkansas roster, and he has just nine targets through eight games.
Both of those players should be focal points for the Arkansas passing offense against Florida.
This article originally appeared on Fort Smith Times Record: Three changes Arkansas football must make under new OC Kenny Guiton
