AJ Hill's Tape From Last Year Shows Rare Talent but Also Real Questions on Decision Making!

Arkansas added a quarterback from Memphis this offseason, and the honest answer on AJ Hill is that almost nobody has seen him play. What exists on tape is one half of unexpected relief work against UAB. Inside that half is one throw that cannot be taught and one decision that cannot be defended.

Hill arrives listed at 6-4 and 215 pounds as a three-star transfer, with 2025 production of 223 passing yards, one touchdown and one interception. He barely played.

That small sample is the entire point, and DJ Williams said so repeatedly while breaking the film down.

"We can't sit here and watch all 12 games of the year, every single snap that these guys played," Williams said. "We try to watch a few drives back to back to back to get an idea."

One Throw That Cannot Be Coached

Hill got on the field because Memphis starter Brendon Lewis was sacked and injured on a third and four against UAB. His first collegiate drive was quiet and competent: patience, no forced ball, a checkdown to the tight end, a drive that ended in a field goal.

Then came the play that changed the evaluation.

Under pressure with a hand on the ground, Hill escaped what looked like a certain sack, kept his eyes downfield and dropped a back shoulder ball into the receiver.

"When I see stuff like this, I see somebody not only with the potential, but just with something that really can't be coached," Williams said. "A lot of guys know that sometimes the right throw would see a guy there, be like, oh, it'd be great if I could back shoulder that, but they just don't have the talent to make that throw."

Williams also noted the release is quicker than expected for a quarterback that size, without the long, drawn out windup that gets punished in the SEC.

Watch: the full 4th & Five breakdown.

The Very Next Snap

The caveat showed up immediately.

On a first and 10 with UAB showing man coverage and the safety staying in the middle after the snap, Hill had made up his mind before the ball was ever snapped, according to Williams. The shallow route came wide open. Hill threw off his back foot toward the sideline and badly overthrew a corner route.

"You go from one of the best throws I've seen at the college level to what is happening," Williams said.

That is the tension in the whole evaluation. The arm talent is not in question. The processing is.

"He does have a cannon," Williams said, "and he's got to work on not only his accuracy and timing of getting the ball out sometimes, but he has to his depth. Are we overthrowing, underthrowing? Is it right on the money? Where's the consistency?"

Williams was clear that it was the only throw of that kind he found on the available film. He was equally clear he did not have the full game.

What the Fourth Quarter Actually Showed

Down two scores late, Hill did more good than bad.

• Scrambled, took his time and threw the ball away rather than force it, a decision Williams praised as smart for a young quarterback in unexpected action.
• Converted a fourth and seven with a throw that let the receiver catch it in stride against man coverage with safety help over the top.
• Drove his team to the goal line with a chance to tie or go for two.

"Great pocket. He doesn't panic," Williams said of the fourth down. "He looks like a pretty athletic guy. He doesn't seem so quick to run all the time. He's somebody who wants to stay in the pocket and make some plays."

The series died on penalties, a delay of game and a late ball to a receiver on a delayed release, a play where Williams pointed out the checkdown underneath came open once the defender jumped the primary. The possession ended on a fourth and goal fade from the 11 that was caught out of bounds.

Williams did not hammer him for it.

"He comes into this probably not expecting the play," Williams said. "Comes in, puts his team in a position to tie this thing up, if not go for two, and win the football game after being down when getting in."

What It Means for the Arkansas Quarterback Room

The assumption around Arkansas has been that KJ Jackson had the job locked down. Williams walked in with that same assumption and walked out of the film with a different one.

Williams' read on the staff is that this is not a formality in either direction. Head coach Ryan Silverfield and the group that came with him from Memphis recruited Hill to follow them to Arkansas because they see the potential, Williams said, but they also recognize what they have in Jackson and are promoting a legitimate, open competition.

The honest verdict is a mixture: flashes of exceptional, God given talent alongside mistakes that are expected from a young quarterback. Whether Hill puts the mental and physical sides together as one is the question. Whether that is enough to beat out Jackson is a separate one.

"He has all the tools to be special," Williams said. "It's just how consistent can he be. We haven't had enough sample size to answer that question."

Spring is where that gets settled, and it starts with the same thing the tape kept asking: can Hill make the read before he makes the throw. Woo Pig.