Kirby Smart: Arkansas receiver Treylon Burks 'is a football player'

Georgia head ball coach Kirby Smart has a lot of respect for Arkansas’s star wide receiver Treylon Burks.

The 6-foot-3, 225-pound junior showed out for seven catches and 102 receiving yards in round one of Arkansas–Georgia in 2020. Facing off again on Saturday, Burks and the No. 8-ranked Hogs are hoping for a different outcome.

“(Burks) is a competitor, he loves the game,” Smart said Monday. “I love the way the guy plays. He’s multipurpose, he can do so many things. They do a really good job of using his skill set. Coach (Kendal) Briles does a good job of making sure the ball can get to him in different ways. He’s a football player.”

Burks, a native of Warren, Arkansas, is second in the SEC in receiving yards through four games. He’s racked up 373 yards and two receiving touchdowns while helping the Hogs take down Rice, Texas, Georgia Southern and Texas A&M.

The former four-star prospect had four catches of 20 or more yards against the Aggies last weekend. Four is the most he’s had in a single game so far in his career. He finished the game with six catches, 167 yards, and a score. It was his sixth career 100-yard receiving game.

For that performance, Pro Football Focus named Burks to the team of the week and the SEC named him co-offensive player of the week.

In 2020, Treylon Burks led Arkansas with 51 catches, 820 yards, and seven touchdowns to set new career-best marks. In 2019, he also led Arkansas in receiving yards as a freshman with 475. At his current pace, Burks will smash his previous benchmarks on the way to the 2022 NFL Draft.

Arkansas heads to Athens with 4-0 record

After three seasons with no conference wins, Arkansas is rolling under the leadership of former Georgia OL coach Sam Pittman. The Razorbacks have officially “moved out” of the FBS basement and are looking like the Cinderella story of the season so far.

Even with a storybook start to the season, the Hogs still have doubters.

“The question, really, now is, ‘Can Arkansas keep doing this?’ SEC analyst Paul Finebaum said on the ESPN College Football Podcast. “Fundamentally, they’re really a strong team.

“They’re going to Georgia and that is not a good spot for them I don’t think. I don’t mean anything against the team, they’ll compete, but it’s a tough turnaround.”

They’ll face No. 2 Georgia and No. 12 Ole Miss on the road before getting back to Fayetteville for a showdown with No. 22 Auburn.

The kickoff on Saturday in Athens is set for 12 p.m. ET on ESPN. College Gameday will also be in Athens for the No. 2 versus No. 8 game.