FAYETTEVILLE - Carter Stoutmire might be the most underrated member of Arkansas' 2026 transfer portal class.
Lost behind wide receiver Chris Marshall, running back Sutton Smith and quarterback AJ Hill is Stoutmire, a Plano, Texas, native who played for Deion Sanders at Colorado from 2023-25 and brings three years of valuable Power Four experience to Ron Roberts' defense.
The 5-10, 216-pound defensive back has mostly played the STAR position during fall camp, but make no mistake about it, he's quite versatile.
Former Colorado Buffaloes safety Carter Stoutmire (23) reacts following a turnover in the second half against the Delaware Fightin Blue Hens at Folsom Field. | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect
"As a freshman I played corner," Stoutmire said Tuesday. "Then played a little bit of STAR my freshman year, too. My sophomore year, I played several positions. I played every position in the secondary, I played a little bit of linebacker, too. I feel like I was [a] Swiss Army Knife. Last year I played a lot of free [safety]. On third down, I played dime and stuff like that."
Stoutmire is also quick to point out his quickness, and understandably so given that he's on a team with a track athlete in Jelani Watkins. He hit 23 miles per hour, as measured during the offseason.
"The numbers said 22.9, but I'll say 23," Stoutmire joked. "I feel like we all in the room know who is the actual fastest guy on the team, but if we go by the numbers on the GPS, I would say I'm the fastest on the team."
Stoutmire totaled 90 tackles in his three seasons at Colorado, including a career-high 42 in 2024 and 37 last season. Over the last two years he broke up 12 passes and forced two fumbles, though he's yet to intercept a pass at the college level.
"This is the point of camp where we're kind of seeing the light at the end of the tunnel," Stoutmire said. "I feel like the closer you get to the end of the camp, you really start to feel like a fresh start once again, because you're not going against each other every day with no end in sight.
"Now, it's like, you really start to prepare for an opponent. I wouldn't say the excitement goes away during camp, I say more so the monotony of going against each other every day with no one to play except you. I feel like the excitement starts to come back around knowing you have an opponent that you're preparing for."
Arkansas' season opener is set for Sept. 5 in Fayetteville against North Alabama. Kickoff is set for 3:15 p.m. CT, with coverage on the SEC Network and the Razorback Sports Network.
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This article was originally published on www.si.com/college/arkansas as Stoutmire's Breadth Of Experience, Speed Could Come In Handy For Arkansas .
