Rogers linebacker Zack Wary showed off his speed in July when he ran the 40-yard dash in 4.45 seconds at Arkansas’ Elite Camp.
That speed and Wary’s play on the field earned him a scholarship offer from Arkansas last Sunday during an in-home visit with tight ends coach Barry Lunney Jr.
“You notice him the most on the field when he’s chasing people,” Rogers Coach Shawn Flannigan said. “He’s so long, and he doesn’t look like he’s moving fast and all of sudden he’s making tackles all the way on the other side of the field. You sometimes wonder how he got there that quick.”
Wary, 6-4, 215 pounds, also has offers from Arkansas State, Illinois State, Air Force, Memphis, Harvard, Yale, Princeton, Missouri State and others. Oklahoma State and Auburn plan to visit the school soon.
“He’s a rangy guy that has a good ability to find the football, has a good nose for the ball,” Flannigan said. “He played safety for us and he played outside linebacker as a sophomore. He could have played inside backer, could’ve played outside linebacker and probably could’ve played defensive end because he has the size and the strength and obviously the speed and quickness to play any of those spots.”
Wary, who plans to make an official visit to Arkansas on Friday, will take official visits to Arkansas State on Jan. 17 and to Air Force on Jan. 24.
The ability to easily absorb instructions and new information isn’t an issue for Wary. He has a 4.0 grade-point average and has scored a 33 on the ACT.
“Having a really intelligent guy as athletic as him makes coaching a lot easier,” Flannigan said. “You tell him things and he has it, so you don’t have to continually go back and keep teaching him.”
Wary, who missed four games because of a sprained ankle, completed the season with 67 tackles, 4 tackles for loss and 1 interception. He had a season-high 18 tackles against Springdale Har-Ber.
MIAMI WR INTERESTED
Receiver Kendrick Edwards of Miami Norland has the size, speed and play-making ability to make an immediate impact on the college level.
Edwards, 6-6, 200 pounds, 4.6 seconds in the 40-yard dash, said he is planning to take an official visit to Arkansas on Jan. 24. Arkansas, Rutgers, Auburn, Louisville and Kentucky are among the 22 schools that have offered Edwards.
So why does he like Arkansas?
“I like that they’re in the SEC, and they have receivers leaving,” said Edwards, who is on an official visit to Rutgers today. “So that gives me an opportunity to come in and play as a freshman.”
Edwards said he’ll be looking at the overall campus environment, the people and whether the program can compete for a championship when he takes his visit.
Arkansas linebackers coach Randy Shannon is Edwards’ lead recruiter.
“They’re looking for play-makers and they need me bad,” Edwards said of Shannon’s pitch. “He said I can come and make a name for myself in the SEC.”
Edwards said he has been acquainted with Shannon ever since he was the head coach at Miami.
“He’s been chasing me since the ninth grade, and he’s a Miami dude,” Edwards said. “He just speaks the truth.”
Edwards said it will probably come down to Arkansas and Rutgers.
“I was thinking about announcing it on signing day,” he said.
CLASS OF 2015
Signing day for the Class of 2014 is less than two months away, but Arkansas is getting a head start by offering scholarships to junior prospects for the Class of 2015.
The Hogs extended an offer Wednesday to junior linebacker Leo Lewis, a highly regarded prospect from Brookhaven High School in Mississippi.
“It means a lot to me that a school like that would be interested in a kid like me,” Lewis said. “I’ve worked hard for it, and I think I deserve it.”
Lewis, 6-3, 220 pounds, 4.65 seconds in the 40-yard dash, has offers from Ole Miss, Mississippi State, Oregon State, LSU and Tennessee. He recorded 100 tackles, 5.5 sacks, 7 quarterback hurries, 1 interception and 1 blocked field goal this season.
“I prefer to play outside,” Lewis said. “I can do anything. I can pass rush. I can stop the run. I really love pass rushing.”
BRAVING THE ELEMENTS
Highly recruited offensive lineman Brian Wallace of St. Louis Christian Brothers College High arrived Saturday at Arkansas for his official visit.
Wallace, 6-6, 304 pounds, 5.2 seconds in the 40-yard dash, was unable to travel Friday because of wintry road conditions. His parents, Brian Sr. and Leslie, accompanied him.
Email Richard Davenport at rdavenport@arkansasonline.com
UA commitments
POS. PLAYER HT WT 40
WR Jared Cornelius 6-1 190 4.48 SCHOOL Shreveport Evangel
RB Juan Day 6-2 210 4.5 SCHOOL North Little Rock
LB Dwayne Eugene 6-2 215 4.5 SCHOOL Metairie (La.) Rummel
LB Khalia Hackett 6-2 208 4.63 SCHOOL Douglasville (Ga.) So. Paulding
DE Jake Hall 6-5 230 - SCHOOL Springdale Har-Ber
K Cole Hedlund 5-10 170 - SCHOOL Argyle, Texas
DL Bijhon Jackson 6-2 325 5.1 SCHOOL El Dorado
TE Jack Kraus 6-5 240 4.9 SCHOOL Bentonville
WR Corey McBride 6-2 180 4.34 SCHOOL Geismar (La.) Dutchtown
WR Torrance Mosley 5-10 175 4.4 SCHOOL Geismar (La.) Dutchtown
CB Chris Murphy 5-10 180 4.4 SCHOOL Marietta (Ga.) Lassiter
QB Rafe Peavey 6-2 208 4.5 SCHOOL Bolivar, Mo.
TE Ravian Pierce 6-4 230 4.53 SCHOOL Plantation (Fla.)
OL Jovan Pruitt 6-6 295 5.1 SCHOOL Dallas Bishop Dunne
DB Santos Ramirez 6-2 180 4.55 SCHOOL Shreveport Evangel
CB Henre Toliver 6-1 180 4.56 SCHOOL Metairie (La.) Rummel
DL Armon Watts 6-5 270 5.1 SCHOOL St. Louis Christian Brothers
Sports, Pages 27 on 12/08/2013