Pulaski Robinson junior T.J. Hammonds, it seems, has taken off-season improvement to an extreme level.
Hammonds, who had about 600 rushing yards and 6 touchdowns as a sophomore, has turned into a major-college prospect thanks to offseason workouts with strength and conditioning coach Brian Maupin, who also coaches linebackers.
Pulaski Robinson football Coach Todd Eskola said Hammonds and several other Senators player bought into the program implemented by Maupin, who played linebacker at Harding from 2007 to 2011.
"And it made a huge difference," Eskola said of Maupin.
Hammonds, 5-11, 196 pounds, recorded a time of 4.42 seconds at a Harding camp during the summer. He scored a rushing and receiving touchdown on 9 touches for 170 yards in Friday's 31-14 victory over Bauxite.
"It takes about two clips on film to realize he's not playing at the same speed of everybody else on the field," Eskola said. "He's got such a better burst than anybody else on the field."
Eskola and his staff took Hammonds and his teammates to mostly Division II camps over the summer.
"Coming out of his sophomore year, we weren't sure if he was going to be D-I or not," Eskola said.
Eskola asked the Bison coaches about of his players after attending a Harding camp and heard a rundown on three or four of his players, but not Hammonds.
"They said, 'Coach, we can't recruit that kid' and I said why not?" Eskola said. "They said he's way, way better than D-2. He said they won't ever have a chance to recruit that kid."
Hammonds was on Arkansas' radar last year and attended the Hogs' spring game in April. Maupin sent Hammonds' highlights from Friday's game in a tweet to Arkansas and Auburn early Saturday morning.
Eskola said he heard from Hogs tight ends coach Barry Lunney Jr. and Tigers assistant Tim Horton not long after the tweet, and they said saw the marked improvement and made contact with him.
Eskola coached the former Senators receiver Evian Hill, who had Division I talent and drew interest from numerous schools, including Arkansas, but failed to academically qualify and attended Kilgore Junior College in Kilgore, Texas in 2011. He signed and played in 2012 and 2013 with Ouachita Baptist.
"This kid right now, as a junior after one game, is far and away better than Evian was," he said. "He's so much faster and his hips are so much better."
ARKANSAS OR OLE MISS
Five days after saying he was no longer committed to Ole Miss, Nashville receiver La'Michael Pettway made an unofficial visit to Arkansas for the Nicholls State game on Saturday at Reynolds Razorback Stadium.
He said he liked what he saw in the passing game.
"What I was most impressed by was I got to see Arkansas air the ball out," Pettway said. "I saw a lot of changes and I see what they're trying to do."
Pettway, 6-3, 200, 4.47, has 14 scholarship offers, including Arkansas, Alabama, Louisville, Ole Miss, Arkansas State, Nebraska, Southern Miss and others.
Two Hog commitments, quarterback Ty Storey of Charleston and Fayetteville tight end C.J. O'Grady spoke to him.
"Ty Storey and C.J. O'Grady were telling me how I should be a Hog," Pettway said. "And what the Razorbacks needed and what they lacked and how the 2015 class in Arkansas coming together and could make make a big impact on Arkansas."
Pettway said he has the Hogs and Rebels as his top two schools and plans to make official visits to both.
"I'll be in Fayetteville and I'll be in Oxford, making my decision will be based off of me being around the schools and how I adapt to the schools," he said.
RAZORBACKS ROOTER
Bentonville junior cornerback Tyrone Mahone, a lifelong Razorbacks fan, was one of about 25 prospects to attend Arkansas' home opener against Nicholls State on unofficial visits.
Mahone, 6-0, 175, 4.45 seconds in the 40-yard dash, is one of the state's top junior prospects and was a member of the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette Super Sophomore team last year.
He impressed Razorbacks secondary coach Clay Jennings and helped his odds of earning a scholarship offer during one of the summer camps.
"He liked how I picked up on what he was teaching and I pretty much held my own out there," Mahone said. "The drills we did I did well in those too."
Mahon recorded 46 tackles, 4 tackles for loss and 2 interceptions last year. Being able to play for the Hogs would mean a lot to Mahone and his family.
"They're huge Razorback fans," said Mahone, who is also drawing interest from Nebraska, Navy and others. "They love them. My dad really wants me to attend the university of Arkansas.
Mahone had times of 11.19 seconds in the 100 meters, 22.40 in the 200 and 50.6 in the 400 during the spring.
E-mail Richard Davenport at rdavenport@arkansasonline.com
Sports on 09/09/2014