Hutchinson Community College defensive end Jeremiah Ledbetter has signed his national letter of intent with Arkansas and will enroll in January.
Ledbetter, 6-4, 270 pounds, 4.72 seconds in the 40-yard dash, made an official visit to Fayetteville in June. He picked the Hogs over scholarship offers from Florida, Georgia, Missouri, Miami and others.
He recorded 78 tackles, 24.5 tackles for loss, 15.5 sacks, 7 quarterback hurries, 2 recovered fumbles and 2 blocked kicks this season, and earned second-team all-America honors. He said Florida and Missouri continued to recruit him.
Early Signees
These five players will enroll at Arkansas in January and will go through spring practices:
DE Daytrieon Dean, Fort Smith (Northside), Arkansas
DL Hjalte Froholdt, Bradenton (IMG Academy), Florida
DE Jeremiah Ledbetter, Gainesville, Georgia (Hutchinson CC)
OL Zach Rodgers, Lewisville (Hebron), Texas
QB Ty Storey, Charleston, Arkansas
Hutchinson coach Rion Rhoades said Ledbetter is among the best he’s ever coached.
“He’s definitely one of the best players I’ve had,” Rhoades said. “I’ve had some really high level defensive linemen and a couple of them still playing in the SEC. I think the thing that makes him so special is he can play big because he’s very strong and explosive. He can also play that speed role too at end.”
Arkansas coach Bret Bielema said Ledbetter is a great addition to the Razorbacks' 2015 signing class.
“He will bring experience and physicality to our defensive line and joins a group of outstanding future Razorbacks that will make an immediate impact with our team," Bielema said. "The sky is the limit with Jeremiah and we can’t wait to see what he’ll bring during spring practice on and off the field.”