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Arkansas and new head coach Ryan Silverfield will be front and center alongside Mississippi State, plus headliners Texas and LSU, for the fourth and final day of SEC Media Days in Tampa (Fla.) on Thursday.
Silverfield is joined by returning center Caden Kitler and All-SEC defensive end Quincy Rhodes Jr., plus running back Sutton Smith who followed Silverfield from Memphis.
He has coached Smith since the latter began his college career at Memphis, but Silverfield has had a long-standing relationship with all three players who share his team vision of proving that 2026 will be the opposite of the low expectations from the outside.
“The three players we bought with us are ones that I had a previous relationship with,” Silverfield said. “And that’s what’s so unique. I’ve had almost a six-year relationship with each one of them.”
Memphis was the first offer Rhodes as a prep prospect at North Little Rock. Smith remained loyal to Silverfield with a chance to play in the SEC and Kitler took a different route, but ultimately Silverfield’s efforts paid off.
“Quincy Rhodes Jr., a young man that I knew in high school, and we are his first offer in high school for Memphis,” Silverfield said. “Obviously, Sutton Smith. Right? A a running back that committed to us out of high school. We were talking about it today, even when he called and FaceTimed me from the hotel in Memphis to commit and how he stayed loyal throughout that time, even when schools came for him in high school recruitment. And then you’ve got Caden Kitler. (He) Actually took an official visit to us (at Memphis) in high school and ultimately chose UCF.”
Rhodes leads a defense that received a much-needed makeover and Kitler will be the anchor of the offense while snapping to a young, inexperienced quarterback who hopes the duo of Smith and Benton alumnus Braylen Russell can provide a balanced attack.
“You think about what those guys are, the way they work and the way they go about their business,” Silverfield continued. “They are leaders of this team, but they also understand what we are all about.
“They are the ones who are building this culture. I’m there just driving the bus and have been so pleased not only with the way they work, but the way they go about leading day by day.”
Silverfield will be at the podium in the main room at approximately 9:30 a.m. CT on the SEC Network.
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