Pulaski Robinson junior athlete T.J. Hammonds on Wednesday became the fourth in-state prospect in the 2016 class to receive a scholarship offer from Arkansas.
Hammonds called and talked to Arkansas tight ends coach Barry Lunney Jr. and Coach Bret Bielema and learned of the offer.
"He said he was very excited about me," Hammonds said of Bielema. "They don't know which position because I'm an athlete and can play like slot, running back, wide receiver."
Hammonds, 5-11, 192 pounds, 4.42 seconds in the 40-yard dash, also has scholarship offers from Vanderbilt, Tulsa, Marshall and Louisiana Tech. Alabama, Auburn, Ole Miss and several others are showing interest as well.
Hammonds has made tremendous strides from his sophomore season to his junior year after going through a strong off-season program headed by Brian Maupin, the Senators' linebackers coach and strength and conditioning coach.
Hammonds had about 600 rushing yards and six touchdowns as a sophomore. As a junior, he rushed 58 times for 852 yards and 7 touchdowns and had 41 receptions for 1,172 yards and 11 touchdowns. He had 19 unassisted tackles, 1 forced fumble and a recovered fumble as a defensive back.
He isn't sure when he'll make a decision on where he will go to college.
"If I commit, I want to make sure that's the place I'm going," Hammonds said. "I don't want to commit somewhere and then decommit and go somewhere else."
Hammonds attended Arkansas' games against Northern Illinois, Alabama and Ole Miss. He plans to visit Fayetteville on March 7.
"I was very excited. It was a very big offer for me,"Hammonds said. "I think the program is going in the right direction."
Sports on 02/26/2015