Forget the football field.

Bobby Petrino’s first test came Wednesday, and it came many miles from the usual glare of the Little Rock or Fayetteville spotlight.

The first-year Arkansas coach remains 0-0 with the Razorbacks, but he can claim a clean signing day sweep in the precinct that counted most: south Arkansas.

Petrino bagged a bumper crop of in-state, southern talent Wednesday, starting at 9 a. m. when Texarkana running back Dennis Johnson signed his letter of intent with Arkansas.

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One hour later, the Camden Fairview foursome of running back DeAnthony Curtis, defensive lineman Lavunce Askew, quarterback Jim Youngblood and defensive lineman Brian Christopher also signed with Arkansas.

To round out the day, Petrino also snagged four wide receivers out of Warren: Jarius Wright, Basmine Jones, Greg Childs and Chris Gragg.

The haul was impressive. Curtis, who was the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette Offensive Player of the Year, rushed for 1, 237 yards and 18 touchdowns and had 707 receiving yards. Johnson rushed for 1, 529 yards and 20 touchdowns. Wright caught 58 passes for 1, 350 yards and 15 touchdowns.

Even by the unpredictable standards of national signing day, Wednesday was unique for Petrino and Arkansas. Though known for producing standout athletes fairly consistently, the area south of Little Rock has rarely sent so many football players to Fayetteville on a single day.

The recent gold standard for Continued from Page 1 W south Arkansas success was 2001, when Warren had three Division I signees. Receiver Brett Smith joined defensive back RoShaun Fellows at Tennessee, while wideout Terrance Hampton headed to Arkansas.

But there hasn’t been a group like the one seen Wednesday.

“Nowhere close [to today ],” said Youngblood’s father, Stan, who moved to Camden from Monticello in 1988. “It’s hard to explain, because the next class may not be as talented. You may go three or four years before you see another [similar ] class coming.”

There’s another reason Petrino can look fondly on his run through the southern sector. Just about all of his catches from the area had orally committed to the Razorbacks before former Coach Houston Nutt resigned.

When Nutt left for Ole Miss, a 15-day silence followed as Arkansas Athletic Director Jeff Long hunted for a new coach. By the time Petrino was hired from the Atlanta Falcons on Dec. 11, the doors had been blown open on the recruiting process of each player, forcing Petrino to reel each back in with little time to spare.

Some, like Jim Youngblood, remained sold on the school even without a coach. Others started listening to outside suitors.

“I liked the [former ] coaching staff,” Curtis said. “I knew they ran the ball. With a new coach, I didn’t know what was going to happen, so I opened my options back up.”

What swayed Curtis was the same thing that swayed most of the pack. After arriving in Fayetteville from Atlanta, Petrino immediately traveled south, hitting the prospects in Camden, Warren and Texarkana with visits both at home and with their high school coaches.

Curtis’ father, Anthony, said he and his son placed phone calls to Oklahoma State, Ole Miss, Texas Tech and Tennessee, essentially letting them know that the race for DeAnthony Curtis was back on. But seeing Petrino in Camden the day after his hiring was announced left no doubt that Curtis and the rest of his teammates were very much wanted.

Ditto for the four receivers in Warren.

“That was big for us,” Wright said. “I think this was his second stop.”

Recruiting can be a years-long sales job, one that involves not just the athlete but the athlete’s family and high school coaches as well. Being a newcomer to the race makes good impressions even more important.

“There’s no doubt he’s a straight-up guy,” Warren Coach Bo Hembree said. “He’ll tell it like it is. I think these kids liked that, and I liked that as a football coach.”

In Johnson’s case, Petrino’s hiring served as a catalyst for his signing with the Razorbacks. Though he was offered a scholarship by Nutt, Johnson was looking at Oklahoma State before meeting with Petrino in Texarkana.

“Arkansas was my only visit,” Johnson said. “That’s where I wanted to go. Coach [Bobby ] Petrino told me I would have an opportunity to play as a freshman.”

Johnson must still get a qualifying score on the ACT to be admitted to Arkansas, and plans to take the test Saturday.

Texarkana Coach Bill Keopple, a former assistant coach at Arkansas and Tulsa, said Petrino was aided by two holdovers from Nutt’s staff, defensive tackles coach Bobby Allen and running backs coach Tim Horton.

Having members of the old regime around to supply background information greatly helps a new coach hone his pitch, Keopple said.

“That’s where you have to trust and lean on Tim Horton and Bobby Allen,” Keopple said. “[Johnson ] had to put a lot of trust in them.”

In some cases, the final factor wasn’t Nutt’s departure or Petrino’s arrival, but rather Nutt’s ultimate destination.

Askew said he was so taken with the old staff at Arkansas that his first instinct was to follow them to Oxford. But after looking at Ole Miss’ recent struggles in SEC play — the Rebels went 10-25 during former Coach Ed Orgeron’s three-year tenure — he banked on Arkansas maintaining or improving its fortunes under Petrino.

“I wanted to go where [former Arkansas and current Ole Miss defensive line coach Tracy ] Rocker went,” Askew said. “But even though it’s Ole Miss, they lose a lot. I want to go to a winning team.”

It might be a good year or so before anyone can tell if the south Arkansas class of 2008 becomes a cornerstone of Petrino’s turnaround efforts. But even if the nine players involved don’t make an impact in Fayetteville, people in the bottom half of the state won’t forget Wednesday anytime soon.

For at least the 2008 recruiting season, south Arkansas was the place to be. Especially for Petrino.

Information for this article contributed by Louie Avery of the Texarkana Gazette.