The Recruiting Guy

Hogs look for another weekend coup

Rison defensive back Malik Chavis (center) sits with his mother, Pamela, and father, Johnny, during a ceremony Wednesday, Dec. 19, 2018, in Rison.

When signing day comes and goes on Wednesday, University of Arkansas Coach Chad Morris and his staff can look back to the Feb. 24-25 weekend of last year for much of the Hogs' success in the 2019 class.

Of Arkansas' 21 signees and 5 commitments in the class, 11 visited on that weekend when approximately 50 top prospects were on campus.

The Hogs are hoping for similar results when they host numerous top prospects March 9, and if last year's big visit day is an indication, the Razorback should see some 2020 or 2021 prospects jumping on board at some point.

Receiver signee TQ Jackson made his first visit to Fayetteville on that highly successful weekend last year and said the visit made a big impact on his decision to commit on July 2.

"I felt the love and the relationships as soon as I walked in the facility," Jackson said."It felt like home and they make it feel like it."

Jackson, 6-3, 180 pounds, of Jefferson, Texas, chose the Hogs over scholarship offers from TCU, Baylor, Arizona, Missouri, Minnesota, Arkansas State, Houston, SMU, Texas Tech and others.

He's not surprised 10 others in his class visited during the weekend.

"Honesty no, because it's hard to turn down this opportunity," Jackson said. "Do you want to just be apart of a program or do you want to be the faces that helped turn a program around?"

Others who visited during last year's weekend include signees and defensive linemen Taurean Carter and Enoch Jackson Jr. of Mansfield (Texas) Legacy, defensive end Collin Clay of Oklahoma City Putnam City, offensive linemen Beaux Limmer of Tyler, (Texas) Lee, Ricky Stromberg of Tulsa Union and defensive back Malik Chavis of Rison.

Jackson, 6-0, 290, picked the Hogs over scholarship offers from Clemson, Texas Tech, Georgia, Florida, Oklahoma State, Iowa, Kansas State, Missouri and others. If the March 9 visitors have the same experience as Jackson, Arkansas will be in good shape.

"The campus instantly shocked me," Jackson said."I fell in love with the place because I know that football is not the only reason I went to college. You know everything about it -- the weight room, the top-notch facilities, the love from the coaching staff."

The Hogs actually received a commitment from defensive lineman Trevis Hopper of Memphis Central last year on Feb. 24, but he later switched to Memphis on April 9.

Stromberg, 6-4, 280, 5.37 seconds in the 40-yard dash, was a late addition to the class on Dec.18 after receiving a scholarship offers from the Hogs and flipping his pledge from Tulsa.

He also had offers from Colorado State, Arkansas State, North Texas, Texas State, Central Michigan and Eastern Michigan while drawing strong interest from Oklahoma and UCLA.

Stromberg said last year's visit planted the seed for him to be a Hog.

"That day made me realize how much I would love to play there," Stromberg said. "And if I got the shot to, I wouldn't pass it up and it came and I took it."

Commitments Pulaski Academy tight end Hudson Henry and cornerback Adonis Otey of Murfreesboro (Tenn.) Blackman also visited during the weekend along with early enrollees Trey Knox, a receiver from Murfreesboro (Tenn.) Blackman and defensive end Zach Williams of Joe T. Robinson.

Limmer was the first member of the 2019 class to pledge to the Hogs when he announced his decision on March 8. Morris and his staff won him over during his visit last year.

"The main thing was that every coach made me feel at home," Limmer said. "That made me feel like they really wanted me there."

E-mail Richard Davenport at rdavenport@arkansasonline.com

Sports on 02/01/2019