Arkansas Razorbacks Football

Former Florida quarterback Feleipe Franks announced Monday he will remain in the SEC and transfer to Arkansas.

He revealed his decision on Instagram, captioning an image of himself in a Razorbacks uniform, "New beginnings."

"Just how genuine everybody is," Franks said of what drew him to Arkansas, per 247Sports' Danny West. "I think that's something that's really good and something you don't get much of nowadays, but that was the best part."

West noted Franks also considered Kansas and UCF.

Franks should be eligible immediately as a graduate transfer following four years with the Gators.

He only played three games in 2019 before his season was cut short due to an ankle injury. Florida coach Dan Mullen announced the quarterback would undergo surgery in September and have a six-month timeline for recovery.

Prior to the injury, Franks totaled 698 passing yards and five touchdowns with three interceptions, completing 76.1 percent of his passes.

The 6'6", 238-pound quarterback first took over the starting job as a redshirt freshman in 2017 and showcased his ability during the 2018 season, throwing 24 touchdown passes with only six interceptions while adding seven more scores on the ground. The dual-threat quarterback was considered a 4-star recruit out of high school and has lived up to expectations.

However, last year's injury opened the door for Kyle Trask enter the starting lineup, and his solid play should make him the go-to option in 2020.

Franks first announced he was leaving Florida on Instagram in December, although he wasn't necessarily set on transferring.

"I plan on exploring my options of entering the NFL draft or playing my final year elsewhere," he wrote.

He was also drafted by the Boston Red Sox in the 31st round of the MLB draft, which he called a "backup plan" last summer, per Mike Rodak of ESPN.

Any professional career will be put on hold while he plays a final season at the college level.

With Arkansas, he should immediately earn the starting quarterback job with the opportunity to reestablish himself and boost his NFL stock.

The Razorbacks went through five quarterbacks on their way to a 2-10 record in 2019, and the squad totaled 15 interceptions and only 14 passing touchdowns to go with a 49.6 overall completion percentage.

Over the last three years, the program only has eight combined wins.

Adding Franks could help kickstart a turnaround for Arkansas under new head coach Sam Pittman.

The Arkansas Razorbacks stayed inside the SEC to find their new head football coach.

On Sunday, Arkansas athletic director Hunter Yurachek announced the school hired Georgia associate head coach and offensive line coach Sam Pittman as its next head coach:

Chris Low of ESPN.com noted Pittman "is widely viewed as one of the best recruiters and offensive line coaches in the SEC. Several former Arkansas players, some of whom have played in the NFL, have sent letters of support to Arkansas officials expressing support for Pittman."

The position was open because the Razorbacks fired Chad Morris earlier this season. Morris was just 4-18 during his tenure that lasted less than two years.

Pittman was the highest-paid offensive line coach in the country at $900,000 per year, according to Low.

"It's always the nature of the beast," Georgia head coach Kirby Smart said of the possible move, per Low. "You always hear rumors flying around and things coming around, but you never know what's true and what's not. Right now we're focusing on the Sugar Bowl and getting ready for it."

This is something of a homecoming for Pittman, who was the assistant head coach, offensive line coach and recruiting coordinator with the Razorbacks from 2013-15 before he took the job at Georgia.

Arkansas went 7-6 and won the Texas Bowl in 2014 and finished 8-5 with a Liberty Bowl win in 2015 when Pittman was on Bret Bielema's staff. Records like that would be a welcome change for the program that is an ugly 8-28 the past three years without a single bowl appearance.

It doesn't make life any easier on the university that Arkansas is in the loaded SEC West and has to compete with the likes of Alabama, Auburn and LSU on an annual basis, but Pittman is at least familiar with the conference. He helped lead the Bulldogs to the last three SEC Championship Games, and his expertise in recruiting should help the Razorbacks turn things around.

Arkansas is 118th in the country in the 2020 recruiting rankings, per 247Sports' composite rankings.

Expect much better recruiting with Pittman leading the way.

A mumps outbreak will reportedly cause a number of Arkansas Razorbacks football players and coaches to miss Friday's game against the Missouri Tigers.

According to John R. Nabors of ESPN Arkansas, "around 15 or so Razorback players and a few coaches" were expected to be held out due to the illness.

Trey Schaap of 103.7 The Buzz reported that cornerbacks coach Mark Smith is among the coaches who were diagnosed with mumps.

Earlier this week, the University of Arkansas released a statement regarding a mumps outbreak on the school's campus:

"Consistent with a recommendation made by the Arkansas Department of Health for all University of Arkansas students and in conjunction with University efforts in response to diagnosed cases of mumps on campus, Razorback Athletics is providing its student-athletes, coaches and staff access to an additional dose of MMR vaccine. While student-athletes may or may not have been personally exposed to those individuals with confirmed cases, their daily interaction with others on campus, including other student-athletes, poses the possibility such exposure could adversely impact their health and well-being. Razorback Athletics remains committed to maintaining the health, safety and well-being of all of our student-athletes, coaches and staff members."

Per the Mayo Clinic's official website, mumps is a contagious viral infection of the salivary glands that is preventable through vaccines. In addition to swollen salivary glands, mumps can cause fever, headaches, muscle aches and fatigue.

Arkansas has lost each of its past eight games, and each of its past five losses have come by 26 points or more. One of the team's biggest issues has been its carousel at quarterback, and that will continue Saturday.

Jack Lindsey is set to start against Mizzou, marking the Razorbacks' fifth different starting quarterback this season. The junior from Fayetteville, Arkansas, has completed three of his four pass attempts for 51 yards and one touchdown this season.

Arkansas will look to avoid going 2-10 in consecutive seasons for the first time in school history. Meanwhile, Missouri is playing for little during Friday's game in Fayetteville despite being 5-6 since it is banned from playing in a bowl game this season.

Chad Morris is out at Arkansas.

The Razorbacks announced Sunday the firing of Morris following a 45-19 loss to Western Kentucky on Saturday. Arkansas is now just 2-8 on the season and 4-18 since Morris was hired in Dec. 2017. 

"As part of my continued evaluation, I have come to the conclusion that a change in leadership is necessary to move our football program forward and position it for success," vice chancellor and director of athletics Hunter Yurachek said in a statement. "It is clear that we have not made the progress necessary to compete and win, especially within the Southeastern Conference."

According to that press release, tight ends coach and special teams coordinator Barry Lunney Jr. will take over as interim head coach.

Per Dan Wolken of USA Today, "the decision to make a change before Morris could complete his second season had been weeks in the making."

He added, "With little evidence that the program was trending in the right direction and an exodus of fan support, Arkansas had little choice but to go in a different direction."

Arkansas will pay a steep price to move on from Morris, owing him a $10 million buyout, according to that report, just two years after firing Bret Bielema, who had an $11.9 million buyout.

Despite the drubbing against Western Kentucky, Morris maintained after the game that the Razorbacks were on the right track.

"It's going to take some time," he told reporters. "Everybody is frustrated with that and I get it. I am, too. But I also understand that to get this thing right, it's going to take some time in this league."

He also said after the loss that he believed he was still the right man for the job.

"I am the guy. There's no question. I knew that this would take some time. I knew that this would be a process of recruiting and developing and building, especially in this conference. I knew the strains that take place weekly in this conference and the depth you need to be successful. Right now we don't have that. We have to go get that, recruit to that and develop. Right now it's unfortunate that we're playing as many young guys as we're playing, but that's the truth to it."

Arkansas disagreed, however, and those young players will now have new leadership going forward following Sunday's decision. 

Quarterback Nick Starkel is moving from one SEC West team to another.

On Monday, the former Texas A&M Aggies signal-caller tweeted he will transfer to the Arkansas Razorbacks:

Ben Kercheval of CBSSports.com noted Starkel is expected to graduate in May, which would make him immediately eligible to play during the 2019 campaign. He will have two years of eligibility remaining and figures to compete with former SMU quarterback Ben Hicks—who also transferred to Arkansas—for the starting spot.

Starkel arrived at Texas A&M as a 3-star prospect, per 247Sports' composite rankings, and started the 2017 campaign as a starter. However, he suffered an ankle injury in the opener against the UCLA Bruins and was unable to return until October.

He ultimately appeared in seven games in 2017 and completed 60 percent of his passes for 1,793 yards, 14 touchdowns and six interceptions. He impressed in a Belk Bowl loss to the Wake Forest Demon Deacons with 499 passing yards, four touchdowns and one pick.

Despite the head-turning finish to the prior season, Starkel lost the quarterback competition to Kellen Mond entering the 2018 campaign under new head coach Jimbo Fisher.

He had just 22 passing attempts with one touchdown and zero interceptions last year.

He heads to an Arkansas program in need of a jolt after finishing a combined 6-18 the last two seasons. The Razorbacks haven't won double-digit games since 2011 but at least have multiple quarterbacks with experience competing for playing time entering the 2019 season.