Fayetteville offensive lineman Ty Clary realized a dream when he orally committed to Arkansas Coach Bret Bielema on Jan. 20.
Clary, 6-4, 285 pounds, was set to commit to Tulsa before visiting with Bielema on the same day and being offered a blueshirt opportunity.
Blueshirting allows a prospect to be put on scholarship on the first day of classes in the fall or after the first semester and is counted for next year's recruiting class.
"The first chance of me going on scholarship would be the very first day of classes in the fall," Clary said.
Clary and his parents met with Bielema and were told about the offer. They left campus and talked it over and for about an hour before Clary called Bielema to tell him he was ready to be a Razorback.
"I was like, 'All right, I'm in,' " Clary said. "He sounded excited."
In addition to Tulsa, Clary had offers from Arkansas State, Air Force, Cincinnati, Kansas, Missouri State, Costal Carolina and Dartmouth.
"I've always wanted to go to the U of A," said Clary, who has a 3.4 grade-point average. "I thought I would be crazy if I didn't take that deal."
Clary helped the Bulldogs to two-consecutive Class 7A state titles his junior and senior years. Since his junior season, Clary has been working toward his goal of becoming a Razorback.
"As long as I can remember, I've always gone to Hog games," he said. "We've always had season tickets. So that's where I've always wanted to play.
"It was really like a dream come true to get the opportunity."
Tight end offered
Arkansas offensive coordinator Dan Enos and tight ends coach Barry Lunney Jr. flew into St Louis on Monday and then traveled two hours by car to see highly regarded junior tight end Luke Ford.
The coaches watched Ford practice basketball for about 1 ½ hours and must of liked what they saw before hitting the road again.
"I called them up and started talking about some football and they gave me the offer," Ford said.
Ford, 6-7, 250 pounds, of Carterville, Ill., also received an offer from Oklahoma State on Monday to go along with one from Southern Illinois.
The offer from the Hogs caught him off guard.
"It was crazy, I was so overwhelmed excited," Ford said. "I was freaking out on the phone. It was just awesome. It was a great experience."
While at Arkansas, Coach Bret Bielema has had A.J. Derby and Mackey Award winner Hunter Henry drafted into the NFL and senior Jeremy Sprinkle is expected to become the third tight end to be drafted.
Bielema had three tight ends drafted while at Wisconsin while also having Jake Byrne who signed as a free agent. Ford said the success of Bielema's tight ends adds to his attraction to Arkansas.
Ford, who has recorded 4.95 seconds in the 40-yard dash, also has a 32-inch vertical jump to his credit. He has two cousins who live about a mile from the Arkansas campus.
His father retired from the Army after serving 20 years. Because of his father's career and moving about 12 times, Ford said he doesn't claim one state as home.
"No allegiance to any particular state," said Ford, who has a 3.14 grade-point average. "I haven't stayed in one place long enough to say that."
Final pushes
It's crunch time in regards to college football recruiting with Saturday being the last contact day before national signing day Wednesday.
Arkansas Coach Bret Bielema and defensive coordinator Paul Rhoads are expected to make an in-home visit with cornerback Chevin Calloway on Saturday.
Calloway, 5-11, 185 pounds, 4.46, of Dallas Bishop Dunne, has more than 30 scholarship offers, including Arkansas, Texas, Ole Miss, Texas A&M, Ohio State, Oklahoma, LSU, UCLA.
He officially visited the Hogs last weekend and is expected to choose from the Hogs, Texas or Ole Miss on ESPNU at 10 a.m. Wednesday.
ESPN rates him as the No. 11 cornerback and the nation's No. 120 overall prospect.
Receivers coach Michael Smith made an in-home visit with defensive back Brad Stewart's parents Wednesday night.
Stewart, 6-1, 194, of New Orleans McDonogh 35, also officially visited Arkansas last weekend and said afterward that his choices were between the Razorbacks, Arizona State and Florida.
He was visiting TCU and missed the in-home with Smith. He'll head to Florida for a weekend visit.
ESPN rates him the No. 13 safety and No. 189 overall prospect in the nation.
E-mail Richard Davenport at rdavenport@arkansasonline.com
Sports on 01/27/2017