Most Important Things Ryan Silverfield Said Ahead Of Arkansas' Road Trip To Utah

FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. — The first big test of the Ryan Silverfield era at Arkansas comes in five days.

The Razorbacks will travel to Salt Lake City to play No. 21 Utah in a nationally televised primetime clash that could set the tone for the rest of the season.

Here are the most important things head coach Ryan Silverfield said in Monday's game week news conference.

On KJ Jackson's performance:

KJ Jackson had two turnovers on Arkansas' final three drives of the first half on Saturday, and the redshirt sophomore owned up to his mistakes in the locker room.

"KJ is the first to tell you, right, nobody is more disappointed in some of the things that occurred in the game than him, and that's what you want for a quarterback," Silverfield said. "You don't want guys that make excuses. You don't want guys that point the finger.

"In fact, at halftime, he looked me straight in the eye and said, 'I know exactly what I did wrong. I'll get it fixed.' And to his credit, I think the second half was a cleaner set of football plays. We all know KJ is calm, cool and collected and no different. He took very hard coaching, and to his credit, when I called him out in front of the whole team about his play not being of the standard of what we expect around here, he nodded and said ‘Yes, sir,’ and he gets it. He’s been diving into the Utah film from the moment he’s been able to and he understands it."

On Arkansas' lack of a run game against UNA:

Arkansas averaged only three yards per carry against the Lions on Saturday, but Silverfield still believes in his offensive line and the Hogs' ability to move the football on the ground.

Sep 5, 2026; Fayetteville, Arkansas, USA; Arkansas Razorbacks running back Braylen Russell (0) celebrates after scoring a touchdown during the fourth quarter against the North Alabama Lions at Donald W. Reynolds Razorback Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Nelson Chenault-Imagn Images | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

"You're facing a tough Utah defense, so we've got to be creative," Silverfield said. "We've got to find ways to run the ball effectively. I’ve done this a long time, 28 years, and there have been times where you know the run games had struggled getting going. The next week, it's a different story. But it's going to take all parts in order to get the run game going. I kind of alluded to this a little bit Saturday night. If we can stretch the ball downfield, that’s going to open up some things, and if we can’t, and we’re not able to win the one-on-one matchups at wide receiver, at tight end, at running back, and the quarterback’s not able to do it, then it’d get tough sledding because there’s an extra hat in the box and that can create some issues.

"So we’ve got to look into that and figure out what’s our best answer going forward. But I’ve got full confidence, I really do. All is not lost. Am I disappointed with what happened? Sure. But guess what? My eyes got to go forward. We’re 1-0 and all I can worry about is improving. I’m not going to throw away the process and the trust I’ve had for the last 27-plus years because it didn’t go exactly what we wanted. We’ll be okay."

On his approach to fourth downs:

Arkansas went for it on fourth down twice in Saturday's game, converting on one of two attempts on a Jelani Watkins end around. The Razorbacks also turned the football over on downs after a pass from Jackson went through the hands of Antonio Jordan.

"I do believe in analytics," Silverfield said. "I do think it helps, but it’ll never be the final decision for us on anything. I think it’s that gut feel. I always say this, we’ve talked about championship analytics. Like, there’s certain things like, okay, 4th and 1. So just so you guys know, everybody that subscribes to this analytics book, which is 98% or something of Division I college teams. If you get the ball on the 25-yard line, it’s saying 4th and 1 is a go. So if we get 4th and 1 on the 34-yard line, opening kickoff, every single game, it’s going to tell you to go for it. Now, it’ll also tell you the exact same thing in the fourth quarter, but what those analytics can’t tell you is how’s the score? How’s the flow? What happened — I joked around about this before — what happened to the quarterback the night before? Did his girlfriend break up with him?

"All these different things are going on. What’s the weather look like? Those are true things that ultimately then comes down to my gut. Are we able to get movement up front? How is this defensive alignment playing? Where do we think you can get them? Is a hard count necessary? So it’s that fine balance, I will never sit there and rely strictly on any analytical tool to make us decisions. But I think if it can help us and prepare us in a proper manner that may ultimately sway one thing or the other, sure. But it ultimately is my job as a head coach to put us in what I think is the best spot."

In a tough road game against a top 25 team, Arkansas may have to roll the dice in order to give themselves a shot at the win.

Kickoff between Arkansas and No. 21 Utah is set for 9:15 p.m. CT on Saturday, with coverage on ESPN and the Razorback Sports Network.

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