FAYETTEVILLE — In a group filled with giants, Josiah Clemons' size still finds a way to stand out. At 6-foot-7 and 341 pounds, the Arkansas football sophomore is the biggest player on the Razorbacks' roster. But despite his massive frame, Clemons wasn't an elite recruit coming out of Mississippi's Madison Central High School in 2024. He was a three-star prospect who committed to Memphis over Mississippi State, and the Bulldogs represented his only Power 4 scholarship offer. A year later, Clemons and a big chunk of that Memphis coaching staff under Ryan Silverfield are now at Arkansas. He didn't play in a single game during his freshman season, but there might not be an offensive lineman on the Hogs' roster with bigger upside.
"I think that young man has a bright, bright future. Just stay steady, big fella. Take it one day at a time," said Arkansas offensive line coach Marcus Johnson, who spent the 2025 season at Ohio State. "He's a big ball of clay, if you will, that we're trying to mold." Clemons primarily works as the second-team left tackle in fall camp. He's behind the likes of left tackle Kavion Broussard and right tackle Bryant Williams on the depth chart, but senior guard Malachi Breland believes that Clemons will eventually rotate with the starters this season. Breland is another Memphis transfer on this year's Arkansas roster. He saw Clemons go through the trials of being a freshman offensive lineman at the collegiate level. Breland said the biggest developments for his fellow Mississippi native came with body development, but he's also made strides as a blocker. Breland thinks "the sky's the ceiling" for Clemons thanks to a determination for improvement. "(Clemons) has the mindset to just want to get better. He always asks me stuff when we’re doing one-on-ones or when we’re indy," Breland said. "He was like, ‘did you see my rep, like, what I could have did better?’ Just stepping or just certain angles and stuff, he always wants to get better. He's not just sitting back." During his first press conference of fall camp, Silverfield pointed to Clemons as a player that the coaching staff wants to "step up" and challenge the starters. Breland is about to begin his fourth year in Silverfield's system, while returnees Caden Kitler and Kobe Branham give Arkansas a foundation on the inside of the offensive line. But on the edge, Broussard is going to be a first-year starter, and Williams is making a leap into the SEC from the Sun Belt with Louisiana. The Hogs need Clemons to push those two into becoming better players. That's the short-term objective for Clemons, but Arkansas envisions a stalwart tackle in the years to come. "(Clemons) listens. He's coachable, he's athletic, he's big, he's long. So he's got a lot of elite traits that you can't coach, just God-given DNA," Johnson said. "I think that young man has a bright future. It's just a matter of just repetition." 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. This article originally appeared on Fort Smith Times Record: "Big ball of clay" | Arkansas football sees bright future in OT Josiah Clemons