KJ Jackson must strike 'fine balance' to ignite Arkansas football offense

FAYETTEVILLE — The film backed up what Ryan Silverfield's initial thoughts following a dud in Week 1. The Arkansas football offense was not as productive as the new head coach would have liked against an FCS opponent. A winning start to his tenure did not diminish his disappointment after the Razorbacks knocked off North Alabama 31-14. Arkansas averaged 4.9 yards per play, 3 yards per carry and coughed up three turnovers in a performance that Silverfield said was not up to his standards. Improved play from quarterback KJ Jackson would go a long way in rectifying the offensive struggles. Against North Alabama, Jackson was 24 for 35 with 267 yards, three touchdowns and one interception. Eight of those nine incompletions came in the first half. After the game, Silverfield applauded Jackson's operations across the final two quarters, but he also bemoaned two specific aspects of the passing game. On Monday, Sept. 7, Silverfield reiterated his belief Jackson must have better decision-making on when to take shots down the field, and when to check down to his running backs. "It's that fine balance, it truly is, of where do we need to get this thing," Silverfield said. "There's no simple or right answer. I've got great faith because he can come to the sideline and even before looking at the iPad be like, 'Yeah, I should have hit the check down.' Or, 'Man, I knew he was going to be open on the post and I should have just let it go.'" Jackson averaged 7.6 yards per attempt in Week 1. Only Auburn and Texas A&M has less explosive passing games among SEC teams. Silverfield believes the Hogs' inability to push the ball down the field through the air played a role in the ineffective rushing attack. Wide receiver Jelani Watkins provided the longest run of the game, and if you remove his 16-yard jet sweep, the Razorbacks only averaged 2.75 yards per carry. The next challenge is a stiff Utah defense that held Idaho to 119 yards passing in Week 1. The Utes have had a top-40 passing defense in each of the past two seasons and ranked 17th nationally in 2025 when they allowed 177.8 yards per game. "They are going to challenge you. You have to find a way to beat (Utah), they're not going to beat themselves, and they play really, really sound," Silverfield said. Utah's Morgan Scalley is in his first season as head coach, but he's been with the program as a defensive assistant for the past 18 years. Scalley was the defensive coordinator under Kyle Whittingham for 10 seasons before getting a promotion this offseason after Whittingham left for Michigan. Silverfield has immense respect for Scalley, and he knows his offense is going to have to play much better if Arkansas wants to pull off an upset. He also has full faith that Jackson is capable of taking a leap in his second start of the season. "(Jackson) 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,'" Silverfield said. "He gets it. He's been diving into the Utah film from the moment he's been able to and he understands it. I think that demeanor helps him." Jackson Fuller covers Arkansas football, basketball and baseball for the Southwest Times Record, part of the USA TODAY Network. Reach him at jfuller@usatodayco.com or follow him @jacksonfuller16 on X, formerly known as Twitter.