FAYETTEVILLE — Count Jenks, Okla., standout and Arkansas cornerback pledge Jordon Curtis among the Razorbacks commits sorry to see defensive coordinator Robb Smith leaving for Minnesota.
But Curtis (6-1, 180 pounds) said his commitment to Arkansas is still strong as ever, in part because of his relationship with secondary coach Paul Rhoads and head coach Bret Bielema.
“Coach Smith was one of the people who recruited me so I am sad to see him leaving,” Curtis said. “I hope he is successful at his next stop and wish him well.
“But I feel good about Coach Rhoads being my position coach and I know that Coach Bielema will hire a good replacement.”
Curtis - who had 20 tackles and four interceptions (three returned for touchdowns), as well as over 800 yards rushing and 200 yards receiving - and Jenks finished 11-1 this season with the only loss being to arch rival Union 45-21 in the Class 6A state semifinals.
Jenks, which had beat Union 35-28 early last season on Curtis’ touchdown run with 1:14 left, was trying to win its fifth straight state title.
Norman North ended up beating Union 30-27 for the title.
“We had a decent season and just came up a little short,” Curtis said. “It was disappointing because our goal every season is to win the state title and we came up short.
“I feel like I did pretty well individually and I had a lot of great teammates and we really pushed each other every day.”
Curtis returned an interception, a punt and a kickoff for touchdowns, and also scored rushing and receiving touchdowns. He is one of two Oklahoma standouts in Arkansas’ 2017 recruiting class.
The other is Union linebacker Kyrei Fisher (6-3, 235), who had 71 tackles and four sacks as a junior, and had 65 tackles and eight sacks this season. He will enroll at Arkansas next week.
“He definitely had a big impact on the field for his team this season,” Curtis said. “He makes a lot of tackles and when he hits you, you know it. I am glad he is joining us at Arkansas.”