Arkansas Razorbacks QB Taylen Green's past connection with WR Raylen Sharpe is proving vital for the slot position in fall camp.
Arkansas football placed a big importance on its slot wide receiver position this offseason when it added former Fresno State transfer redshirt senior Raylen Sharpe, a small speedster with a past connection to quarterback Taylen Green.
Sharpe, who stands at 5-foot-9, 169-pounds, graduated from Allen High School in Texas, the same school that Green spent time at before he moved on to Lewisville High School.
“(Sharpe’s) and Taylen’s chemistry has gotten better throughout the summer,” wide receivers coach Ronnie Fouch said Monday. “And the good thing about them too is they have history from high school, from the same area. So, they they’ve known each other.
“I think they were on the same high school team probably for a year or so. So, they have a history together. They have a relationship, and it’s really helped us on offense for sure, just replacing that spot in the slot.”
The duo actually goes back even earlier than that, according to Sharpe, and that close-knit bond has spread across the entire team.
“I’ve known (Taylen) since, like, elementary school,” Sharpe said. “But in high school, I remember he was trying to gain weight. He’d have, like, four PB&Js in the morning, things like that. Just seeing as his grit, he hasn’t changed a bit. That’s the biggest thing. He’s hungry just to make us successful as well. I told him one day, like, we go as he goes. And so our dreams are his dreams as well.
“(Taylen) cooked the other day before camp, making burgers, things like that, just doing things so everyone else can feel like a family. So he does that, and he’s always going to have a smile on his face.”
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Raylen Sharpe’s past familiarity in Petrino offense
Why is the pair’s history so important? For starters, Arkansas returned none of last year’s starting wideout unit to its current team. That means Green will need a new go-to pass-catcher with Andrew Armstrong in the NFL.
Secondly, the Hogs clearly have hope that Sharpe — who also has ties to offensive coordinator Bobby Petrino from his time at Missouri State — will produce in the slot.
“I think (with) Raylen, his familiarity with the offense, he’s played in it,” Fouch said. “I think that’s a huge help as far as him coming in. Knowing the offense now, he’s just focused on leading the room, getting everybody together.”
Sharpe has totaled 140 receptions for 1,821 yards and 11 touchdowns across his last three years of college football (two at Missouri State, one at Fresno State). He notched 73 grabs for 991 yards and seven scores in his 2023 FCS All-American season under Petrino with the Bears. That experience has led to Sharpe taking on a leadership role in Arkansas’ offense.
“For me, just maturity-wise, you got to have a short-term memory loss in football itself,” Sharpe said. “So if I’m talking to (Ja’Kayden Ferguson) and things like that, if you drop a football, just being able to shake that. At this point, fall camp is new to them.
“Just being able to learn quickly, because everyone can play in our room. I feel like we have the best receiver room in America, and that’s from upper classmen to lower classmen. So just getting them to a spot where they feel they’re very confident to be able to play.”
So far through the four fall camp practice portions that have been open to the media, Sharpe has been the starter at slot receiver during the 11-on-11 fastball periods. That isn’t necessarily surprising, but Arkansas has mixed up the starters at other offensive spots, so it’s a pretty good sign that Sharpe has a strong grasp at the position.
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