Over the weekend, Arkansas hosted two highly recruited linemen, one who committed to the Hogs and another who the Razorbacks hope to add to the commitment list.
Defensive lineman Hjalte Froholdt, an Arkansas commitment, and offensive lineman Jalen Merrick were referred to as the "Fro bothers" by Arkansas Coach Bret Bielema -- Froholdt is often called "Fro," while Merrick is well known for his 1970s-style afro.
"It was Fro-week and every day was Fro-day," Merrick said with a chuckle.
Merrick, 6-5, 310 pounds, 5.21 seconds in the 40-yard dash, of New Smyrna Beach, Fla., is a major recruiting priority for the Hogs and has more than 20 scholarship offers from schools that include Arkansas, Alabama, Florida State, Wisconsin, Ohio State, Oklahoma and Michigan State.
"It was great, a lot different than what people say," Merrick said of his trip to Arkansas. "Arkansas is a very good place, and I could see myself playing here. Everybody was like. 'It's a lot of country and woods.' But once you get here in Fayetteville, it completely opens up your eyes. It definitely puts them high in contention for my favorite school."
The people on campus and in the area impressed Merrick.
"The people here are really just nice," Merrick said. "In the elevator, I had a random conversation with a person I didn't know. Everybody is just nice and welcoming here."
Froholdt, 6-5, 290, played for Bradenton (Fla. ) IMG Academy and committed to Arkansas over scholarship offers from Alabama, Florida State, Michigan, Ohio State, Penn State, Michigan State and others.
He said he pledged to the Hogs because of the positive vibe he received from the coaches and community. He also said he believes Merrick experienced the same.
"He pretty much said the the same things I said, the people are nice here," Froholdt said. "He was just smiling the whole time."
The Tuesday before his visit, Merrick received a photo showing Bielema and offensive line coach Sam Pittman with a cut out of him and the words "The Fro" placed on his afro.
"People came up to me and just started saying the 'Fro' and everything like that,"Merrick said. "It's just really crazy."
Froholdt did his share of recruiting Merrick while revealing why he picked the Razorbacks.
"He just told me about the things that kind've made him make his decision," Merrick said. "Great player and a better person."
Froholdt, who will enroll at Arkansas in January, said he would like to see Merrick in Fayetteville.
"He's a cool guy," Froholdt said. "We like Jalen. We hope he's coming here next year in the spring like me. He's a very good guy and I think he enjoyed [the visit] as well."
Arkansas' back-to-back shutouts of LSU and Ole Miss weren't a shock to Froholdt, who committed to the Hogs fresh off last year's 3-9 record.
"I always knew they were going to play like this. Coach Bielema is the real deal," Froholdt said. "He's not a guy that talks and when you get here he's a totally different person. That's what you hear from all of the players. It's a totally different football team right here."
Pittman's description of Arkansas pretty much jived with what Merrick experienced.
"Coach Pittman has been recruiting me for a really long time," Merrick said. "I was just going off by what he's been saying about the place, and it was nice to finally get up here and be around it. It's just great."
On the first day of his visit, Merrick tweeted a picture of him with Bielema wearing an afro wig.
"With Coach B, he's a really fun guy," Merrick said. "He took pictures with the fro. He was trying to relate to me as much as possible."
Redshirt freshman quarterback Austin Allen was Froholdt's player-host.
"He's funny," Froholdt said. "He's from the area, so he knew a lot of people."
Junior offensive guard Sebastian Tretola showed Merrick around town Saturday night and joked he wouldn't have a chance to duplicate his well-publicized touchdown pass against Alabama-Birmingham.
"Sebastian told me, 'You're not going to throw a touchdown pass until I'm gone,' " Merrick said, laughing. "He was making it seem like I would really have a chance to throw it. I felt like a part of the Razorbacks while I was here."
Being out on the town with Tretola, Merrick learned that Razorback players are treated like celebrities.
"Everybody seemed to know him," Merrick said. "Everybody wanted to take pictures with him doing the Heisman. It was really nice."
Merrick officially visited Wisconsin on Nov. 14-16 and has plans to visit Florida State and Alabama. When asked if he might commit to Arkansas and cancel his last two trips, he was unsure.
"I'm not too sure yet," Merrick said.
E-mail Richard Davenport at rdavenport@arkansasonline.com
Sports on 11/25/2014