Little Rock Christian junior athlete and Arkansas basketball commitment Justice Hill made his return to the football field against Warren on Tuesday night at War Memorial Stadium after a year layoff.
It was quite a return.
Hill played at cornerback, receiver and some quarterback in the Wildcat formation in the first half, but took over as the Warriors’ signal caller in the second half when starter Jackson Bowersock injured his hand.
“That was the position I’m the most comfortable at anyway, so I was ready for the challenge,” Hill said.
Up for the challenge is an understatement. Little Rock Christian trailed Warren 20-13 at the half, but Hill led the offense to 30 second half points and a 43-28 victory. Hill finished the night with 110 yards and 3 touchdowns on 12 carries while completing 4 of 6 passes for 94 yards and a touchdown. He also had 2 tackles on defense.
“Warren never had film on me,” Hill said. “I’ve never played them before, so I know they didn't know what I could do.”
Warren Coach Bo Hembree said the Lumberjacks had no idea what to expect from Hill.
"We weren't ready for that,” Hembree said. “We hadn’t seen Hill play. We just try to go back to our base stuff. It’s hard when you don't game plan something to come out and stop it."
Hill, 5-10, 160 pounds, last played football as a freshmen when he completed 54 of 77 passes for 1,267 yards, 19 touchdowns, and rushed 62 times for 897 yards and 13 touchdowns for the Warriors’ ninth-grade team. He started at cornerback for the varsity during the playoffs .
He ran 65 yards to the left side of the line for a score to pull the Warriors within 20-19 in the third quarter.
“I got chill bumps running down the sidelines,” Hill said. “It felt good again.”
Hill compared the long run to other highs he enjoys on the basketball court.
“Maybe a steal at half court and a dunk,” he said. “Something like that or a game winning three.”
His father, Fitz Hill was an assistant at Arkansas from 1992 until 2000 when he was named the head coach at San Jose State. Hill said his father is a great help to him about opponents.
“He breaks down film like a genius,” Hill said. “He knows everything. He can tell me everything they’re going to do by the way they line up.”
On Sept. 1, college football coaches can make contact with junior prospects. There’s a good chance coaches could reach out to Hill based off conversations with Little Rock Christian Coach Eric Cohu.
“There’s been a lot of coaches calling Coach Cohu,” Hill said. “So I’m expecting it.”
Two years ago, Hill spoke with Razorback Coach Bret Bielema about playing football at the next level.
“Coach Bielema said he thinks I could be the first person to be dominate in basketball and come out and play football,” Hill said.
The idea of playing both sports at Arkansas has crossed Hill’s mind.
“Maybe, I love football,” he said. “So it’s a thought.”