FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. — If there is freshman making a case for more playing time down the stretch for Arkansas it's most certainly true freshman defensive tackle Danny Beale.
The Northeast Arkansas native is a massive human being at 6-foot-5, 347 pounds and is currently graded out as the third-highest interior lineman on the roster. With just a sample size of 36 snaps this season, Beale has a 63.1 overall defensive grade and sits No. 2 as a pass rusher at 61.4, according to Pro Football Focus.
Among SEC freshmen defensive linemen, Beale ranks in the top 10 in all statistical categories and is chomping at the bit to make an impact this weekend against Vanderbilt. The Commodores are struggling to block up front having allowed 12 sacks this season, which ranks No. 90 nationally but tied for No. 7 in the SEC.
Coach Clark Lea's offensive line has been presented with protection issues at the line of scrimmage all season, giving up a total of 31 tackles for loss, which also ranks No. 7 in the SEC and No. 81 nationally.
Vanderbilt will be starting true freshman quarterback Jared Curtis for the foreseeable future following collarbone surgery for Blaze Borlowitz. The former 5-star has completed 82-of-130 passes for 968 yards, five touchdowns, but is prone to turnovers himself, tossing five interceptions this season.
The Razorbacks have struggled most of the season to apply pressure on the quarterback and are one of the worst in all of college football at creating negative plays. For the season, Arkansas has tallied nine total sacks (No. 94, FBS) and only 24 tackles for loss (No. 109 FBS).
Silverfield knows the only way his defense can have success on Saturday night in Nashville is if defensive coordinator Ron Roberts can dial up various pressures to potentially speed up the decision-making of Curtis.
"There's nothing that he cannot do," Silverfield said. "There's a reason he is the highest-rated recruit in Vanderbilt history. There's a reason he's playing at a young age. Freshman quarterbacks that can play like that have to be elite in talent, and he's highly intelligent. He's a local product there that they got to flip from Georgia, and he can do it all. I mean, he's big, he's strong, he can make every throw.
"There's times where he gets pressured and you see him rolling out and throwing back across the body and making these elite passes. Tremendous arm strength. He can do it all. I think they've got great comfort in knowing that he's the guy that can get them where they need to be, but he's a young quarterback, and so we know that that takes time. But he's as talented as any quarterback out there."
This is where having a standout freshman along the interior such as Beale take up space, and open up holes for linebackers and safeties to force quarterbacks into bad decisions and throw timing off with receivers.
With the Razorbacks struggling to generate pressure consistently, giving the freshman additional opportunities could provide a glimpse of what the defense might look like moving forward. And Silverfield has already indicated that younger players such as Beale will continue getting opportunities as the season progresses.
"'You're getting to see those guys like Danny Beale, a true freshman playing in the SEC,' Silverfield said. 'That's hard. Right now, he didn't get a 100 reps, but I think every week we're going to get to see him. [Xadavien Sims], right? We're going to get to see that progression.
"So, I do think we're just scratching the surface of what that group's capable doing. The more they get to play football, hopefully the the better they'll do.'"
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