Arkansas is leaning on a couple of newcomers to steady a defense that lost nearly every starter in the back end.
Both guys are answering the call early.
Four practices into fall camp the Hogs have gotten a clearer look at what Khmori House and Shelton Lewis bring to a secondary that returns just one starter from a year ago.
They each spent time at other schools before landing in Fayetteville and both are showing up in ways that go beyond stat sheets.
House arrived by way of Washington and North Carolina, where he played linebacker and racked up 81 tackles, 2.5 tackles for loss, a sack, an interception and a pass breakup last season while earning All-ACC Honorable Mention honors.
This spring he moved to safety to compete for the “Star” role in co-defensive coordinator Ron Roberts’ scheme, a hybrid spot that asks a player to cover receivers in space one snap and thump a running back in the box the next.
He’s made that switch look a little easier than it actually is to accomplish.
House already looks like captain of back end
Secondary coach Deron Wilson didn’t hold back when describing what House means to the group after watching him grab two interceptions and break up a pass during a perimeter drill period.
“I think he is the energy, the heartbeat,” Wilson said. “He’s one of the guys, as he goes, the secondary goes because he brings the physicality and the mindset to the secondary, for the secondary.”
Wilson went a step further and compared House to Jalen Pitre, the former Baylor standout who Roberts coached before Pitre became a First Team All-Big 12 defensive back and eventually a Houston Texan.
Wilson said Pitre followed a similar path from linebacker to defensive back and that Roberts saw the same traits in House the moment he hit the transfer portal.
House himself pointed to the mental adjustment as the toughest part of the move.
“Biggest thing I had to get used to is being in space more rather than being in the box, eyes on the linemen,” House said. “I’m learning passing concepts of offenses, different splits, and things like that to give me tendencies of what routes are going to come.”
Senior cornerback Christian Harrison backed up what the coaches are seeing on tape and in walkthroughs.
“Khmori, he’s a dog. Not scared to put his hat in there,” Harrison said. “He’s gonna make plays, and you’re gonna see a lot of that on Saturdays this year.”
Lewis is treating fall camp like job interview
Across the field Lewis is chasing a starting cornerback spot after three years at Clemson where he played in 27 games with six starts and finished with 29 tackles, 10 pass breakups and two interceptions.
Last season was quiet by comparison as he appeared in just four games and logged 49 snaps.
He drifted between the first and second team through spring practice but says the extra reps in fall camp have him playing with more confidence.
“I just feel like when I know what I’m doing, when I know what I’m getting, I can just play a lot faster and communicate on the field,” Lewis said. “So I feel like from the spring, just getting here, I kind of sat out like the rest of last year, just getting my feet back wet.”
That trust is showing up on the practice field too.
Lewis picked off a pass thrown by quarterback AJ Hill during a team tempo period, one of several plays that have caught the coaching staff’s attention.
Fellow cornerback Jahiem Johnson has noticed a change in how Lewis carries himself compared to the spring and offseason.
“He’s treating the game like he’s a pro now,” Johnson said. “He’s approaching the game like a pro in all aspects. He’s asking questions in meetings, asking me stuff, I’m asking him stuff, and we’re just coaching each other up. I think he’s a pro now.”
Both players want to raise ceiling for Arkansas
Lewis played in the College Football Playoff during his time at Clemson and said that experience is part of why he pushes his new teammates.
“That’s what we’re trying to get to,” Lewis said. “The guys got to be the guys to lead the team to where we all want to go. We should all be plus-one to each other, we shouldn’t be bringing nobody down because we never know who is going to be that guy to step up.”
With just one returning starter in the secondary the Razorbacks needed newcomers to step in fast and both House and Lewis appear to be doing exactly that.
Fall camp continues Monday with the Hogs now 21 practices away from their season opener against North Alabama on Sept. 5.
Key takeaways
Khmori House has moved from linebacker to the Star safety spot and already earned praise as the “heartbeat” of Arkansas’ secondary
Shelton Lewis is building on a rocky 2025 season at Clemson by playing faster and more confidently through four days of fall camp
Arkansas returns only one starter in the secondary making early growth from both transfers important heading toward the Sept. 5 opener
