College Football has seen many changes over the past several years, including the approval of NIL (Name, Image, and Likeness) and the transfer portal has given student-athletes an opportunity to shop themselves to other schools looking for possible wider exposure and in some cases larger monetary gain.
With the transfer portal in place, it is not uncommon for a college team to look completely different from year to year.
These changes across college athletics have had a direct impact not only on Division I schools but across all levels of college athletics.
UAM is not completely immune to players leaving before their senior year.
The Weevils had to return a couple of seasons ago having to rebuild their entire core of running backs after the majority of backs with playing time transferred out.
Even the upcoming 2024 Season will have a different look, this time at wide receiver.
The Weevils will return only three players at the wide receiver position after losing four players to the transfer portal with JaVonnie Gibson and Kristian Gammage moving to the University of Arkansas at Pine Bluff, Nick Howard transfering to Grambling State University and Arlie Lee signing with the University of Central Arkansas.
At receiver, the Weevils return J’Waun Turner who had time on the defensive side of the ball in 2023, Asa Westerman, Jordan Mansfield, and Isaiah Cross.
The Weevils have also added a few transfers to the receiver roster as well.
Of the returning receivers that had playing time in 2023, two saw significant playing time.
Mansfield returns for his fifth year on campus and his fourth season on the football field.
Mansfield enters his senior season with 576 career receiving yards and six touchdowns.
Mansfield is one of the few players returning that has been with the Weevils four four or more seasons.
One of the players topping the time on the UAM list is receiver Isaiah Cross.
Cross, who came to UAM in 2019, came to the Weevils out of Liberty-Eylau High School in Texarkana, Texas where as a senior played quarterback producing 1571 yards and 17 touchdowns while also rushing for 777 yards and six touchdowns.
As a sophomore at the high school level, Cross had 606 receiving yards with three touchdowns.
Cross would play in one game at UAM in 2019, keeping his redshirt status.
After the cancellation of the 2020 Season due to the CoronaVirus, Cross would return in 2021 as a starter and remains a starting receiver heading into 2024.
Cross has earned 1210 receiving yards with eight touchdowns, and earned All-Conference Honorable Mention honors in 2023.
Cross listed as a 5th year Redshirt and is currently working on his Master’s Degree in physical education and coaching.
Also returning for an unprecedented sixth season is quarterback Demilon Brown.
Brown came to UAM in 2019 after finishing his career at Rivercrest High School.
During his time in high school, Brown would lead his team to a 3A State Championship where he earned All-State, All-Conference, All-Star MVP, and State Championship MVP honors.
Brown would come to UAM and would become the starting quarterback in 2019, playing in 10 games, and earning Great American Conference freshman of the Year honors.
Brown would pass for 1059 yards in his freshman year.
Returning in 2021, after the covid hiatus, Brown would produce his best season on paper, passing for 2383 yards with 17 touchdowns.
Brown would be limited to just eight contests in 2022 after suffering an injury and in 2023, Brown would be hit with injury again playing in only four contests, but passed for 1046 yards and 11 touchdowns in those four contests.
Brown currently has 5843 career passing yards and 47 career passing touchdowns.
Brown has set a UAM record for completion percentage in a game with 82% going 13 of 15 against Southern Arkansas in 2019.
Brown has an opportunity to advance his standings in the record books at UAM needing 1,228 yards to move to fourth place in passing yards and a repeat of 17 touchdowns like in 2021 will move him to third overall in touchdown passes.
Brown has five career games having 300 plus yards passing and one 400 plus yard game.
The 2024 Season will begin on Thursday, September 5, at Convoy Leslie-Cotton Bowl Stadium, hosting Northwestern Oklahoma State University with a scheduled kickoff at 6 pm.
The Weevils defeated the Rangers last season to open the 2023 Season on the road 49-24 and currently leads the overall series seven wins to six.
The Weevils will look to improve last seasons record that saw the Weevils finish with a record of 2-9.
