FAYETTEVILLE— Arkansas has its usual spot in the lower third of the SEC recruiting standings as National Signing Day has come and gone.

Arkansas is rated ninth in two experts’ rankings and 10 th in one other. Rivals. com has Arkansas’ class ninth in the SEC as does Max Emfinger while Scout. com places the Razorbacks at No. 10. Last year, Arkansas was rated No. 9 in the SEC by Rivals, No. 12 by ESPN and No. 8 by Emfinger.

Including the 2002 class through the class signed Wednesday, Arkansas never has received a rank above seventh or below ninth in the SEC by Rivals. Arkansas recruiting coordinator Chris Vaughn shared his thoughts on that subject Wednesday.

“Rankings are for the media to talk about,” Vaughn said. “If you got rated the No. 1 team you would beat your chest, I guess. There isn’t a lot of difference in one ranking to another. It’s all people’s opinions.”

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Arkansas never finishes ahead of Auburn, Alabama or Tennessee in the recruiting rankings, yet the Razorbacks beat all three of those teams last fall on their way to the SEC West championship.

“We think we do a good job of evaluating,” Vaughn said. “We don’t worry about where they are ranked or who is recruiting them. That isn’t a factor with us. Do we like them and do they fit into what we are doing ? Will they help us win championships ?”

Vaughn said the Arkansas staff also looks beyond the player’s ability just on the field. Arkansas tries to get athletes who will graduate and also stay out of trouble during their four or five years in Fayetteville.

“It starts at the top with Houston (Nutt ),” Vaughn said. “It has a lot to do with the character of the young men we get and how we coach them. One thing about this game, you can have height, weight and speed, but it still comes down to coaching them and making them believe. All we need is a kid who cares and we can trust.”

Emfinger said he feels that Arkansas got some players in this class that will help them very soon on the field. Emfinger has had some of Arkansas’ signees in his All-American Bowl Game Classic.

“The offensive line class Arkansas signed is dynamite,” Emfinger said. “[Monticello’s ] Seth Oxner and [Jonesboro’s ] Grant Cook both played in my game this year. Brandon Barnett played in the 2005 game and was fabulous.”

Barnett is from Butler County (Kan. ) Community College and formerly from Texarkana. A couple of other Arkansas additions in this class caught Emfinger’s attention including Hargrave (Va. ) Military School offensive lineman Kareem Crowell and Beaumont (Texas ) West Brook quarterback Joe Chaisson.

“Kareem is very aggressive and I had him rated one of the best players in the nation last year,” Emfinger said. “I really like Joe Chaisson. He will be a great quarterback for the Razorbacks.”