Silverfield Wouldn't Say Who's Winning Razorbacks Quarterback Battle

Spring practice is supposed to produce answers.

Arkansas coach Ryan Silverfield doesn't know the answer to the biggest question or have a particular interest in giving one on the quarterback situation.

After Saturday's Red-White Game wrapped up at Fayetteville, the scoreboard showed Red 14, White 13. KJ Jackson's side edged AJ Hill's side in a scrimmage that featured two full 15-minute quarters and an extra final drive for both offenses.

But for Hogs fans hoping spring would clarify things at the most important position on the field, this one wasn't particularly satisfying.

Both quarterbacks had their moments. Neither one seized the day.

Arkansas coach Ryan Silverfield during Red-White Game. | Ted McClenning-allHOGS Images

Jackson Holds Edge for Now

On the numbers, Jackson came out ahead.

He finished 9 of 13 passing for 129 yards and a touchdown. Hill went 9 of 17 for 95 yards, threw an interception and scored on a 1-yard option keeper.

When you put those stat lines side by side, Jackson is the guy who looks more like a starter and by most accounts throughout spring, he's been ahead in the competition.

The play of the day came late in the second quarter when Jackson dropped a 65-yard touchdown pass on a deep post to CJ Brown.

Brown got loose on the route, hauled in a well-placed ball and outran the rest of the White defense to the end zone.

It was the only passing touchdown of the game and it was the kind of throw that makes you think Jackson could genuinely start in the SEC.

People around the program noticed that Jackson seemed to get more comfortable as the scrimmage moved along, and he acknowledged that's how it felt from his end too.

"Yeah I think that's just how the game of football goes," Jackson said. "Of course we wanted to come out and score every time we got the ball, and that's the goal regardless."

He also didn't dance around what he still needs to tighten up before fall camp.

"The story of my life has been accuracy," Jackson said. "So just keep on building on that and improving that to the fall and be the best me I can be for the team."

That's a candid self-evaluation. A quarterback openly acknowledging that accuracy remains his ongoing challenge isn't a confidence builder heading into the offseason but it's honest and it tells you the work isn't finished.

Hill's Costly Miscommunication

The pivotal moment for Hill came when he was looking for Chris Marshall on an option route and the two weren't reading the coverage the same way.

Nsongbeh Ginyui picked the pass off and returned it untouched for a touchdown, a backbreaker in a game decided by a single point.

Hill broke down what went wrong.

"It was intended for Chris," Hill said of the interception. "It's an option route. Just miscommunication. I saw one thing, he saw another, and they were playing a little bracket, man coverage deal. We just weren't on the same page."

Option routes live and die on quarterback-receiver chemistry.

That kind of breakdown can happen to any offense still learning a new system, but it's the exact sort of thing Hill has to eliminate if he's going to push past Jackson in this competition. Turnovers don't win quarterback battles.

To his credit, Hill came out of the spring game focused on what he needs to fix rather than making excuses for the result.

"Most definitely my feet, just getting my arm quicker," Hill said. "Foot speed, get my arm quicker. Just keep studying the offense, go through all these practices with the VR, and watch it on iPad, and just see what I could have done better, and just try to get that ready for fall camp."

That's the right mindset. But mindset alone doesn't guarantee results when fall camp opens.

Arkansas Razorbacks quarterback AJ Hill. | Ted McClenning-allHOGS Images

Silverfield Plays It Straight Down Middle

If you were hoping Silverfield would clear things up after the Red-White Game, you walked away disappointed.

The first-year Arkansas coach was careful with his words. He was complimentary of both quarterbacks, honest about the shortcomings he saw and absolutely unwilling to signal which direction he's leaning.

He acknowledged that both guys struggled at times, that the Razorbacks were huddling more than usual and that the sense of urgency wasn't quite where it needed to be.

Then he pivoted to the positives — both flashed ability, both made impressive throws at moments — without giving an inch on the bigger question.

"Both KJ and AJ have continued to make steps in the positive direction," Silverfield said. "I think you got to see some throws today where you'd sit there and say, 'Man, that was a big-time throw. That guy could be a starter for the Razorbacks and a great quarterback in the SEC.'"

It sounds encouraging.

It also tells you nothing about who's actually going to get the job.

Silverfield quickly balanced the praise with the reality that both quarterbacks still have real things to clean up, reads that need to happen faster, situations that required more decisiveness, before landing on a conclusion that was perfectly non-committal.

"I've been pleased and listen, I think either one of them gives us a great opportunity to be successful," Silverfield said.

That's a coach who's either genuinely undecided or protecting a decision he hasn't announced yet. Maybe it's both.

Either way, Silverfield wasn't going to hand the Razorback fan base a headline on Saturday and he didn't.

What he did confirm, without saying it directly, is that the competition is real and it isn't over.

A head coach who'd already made up his mind probably wouldn't be talking about both quarterbacks this carefully.

Silverfield's evenhandedness in itself is a clue that Jackson's statistical edge in the spring game hasn't locked anything up.

The Offseason Is Where This Gets Decided

What the Red-White Game did confirm is that Jackson has a working edge based on 15 practices and a cleaner day in the scrimmage.

Hill's rushing touchdown showed he's athletic enough to make plays with his feet, but the interception was the loudest play of the day and it went against him.

The Hogs don't have a starter yet — at least not one their head coach is willing to identify publicly.

Both Jackson and Hill have a full offseason of work ahead before fall camp, and based on how carefully Silverfield spoke Saturday, that's exactly where he wants this competition to go.

The biggest question in Fayetteville remains unanswered. Don't expect Silverfield to change that anytime soon.

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