Richard Davenport covers recruiting for the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette. He appears weekly on The Red Zone w/ JB on 92.1 FM Fayetteville, The Morning Rush w/ Tye & Tommy on 95.3 FM in Fort Smith; 96.3 FM in Hot Springs; 104.3 FM in Harrison/Mountain Home, 99.5 FM in Fayetteville and The Zone w/ Justin & Wess on 103.7 FM in Little Rock.
The Recruiting Guy:
Running back commit eager to show parents Fayetteville
Published: October 4, 2016 at 8:56 a.m. - Updated: October 4, 2016 at 3:05 p.m.
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Maleek Williams/Twitter
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Punta Gorda (Fla.) Charlotte running back Maleek Williams
Arkansas running back commitment Maleek Williams will also make his official visit to Fayetteville this weekend.
He committed while on a visit to Arkansas in June.
Williams, 5-11, 215, 4.42 seconds in the 40-yard dash, of Punta Gorda (Fla.) Charlotte picked the Hogs over approximately 17 scholarship offers, including ones from Illinois, North Carolina, Boston College, Kentucky, Tennessee and others.
Because Charlotte has a bye week, Williams, his mother, father and stepmother will arrive in Fayetteville on Friday morning or early afternoon.
"I love Fayetteville, but I haven't been on an official, so I really don't know what to expect," Williams said.
The personable and engaging Williams said he's told his parents about Fayetteville.
"I told them, 'You haven't been to a place like this,' " Williams said. "It's pretty place with all the mountains and stuff like that. We don't have that in Florida."
As a junior, Williams rushed 59 times for 664 yards, an 11.3-yard per-carry average, and had 12 touchdowns while splitting time with Elijah Mack, now a freshman at South Florida.
In five games this season, Williams has rushed 76 times for 745 yards and 9 touchdowns, including 14 carries for 243 yards and 4 touchdowns in a 63-20 victory over Cape Coral Island Coast on Friday.
The Fighting Tarpons scored a school-record 63 points in the first half.
"I felt in a groove, really," Williams said. "When I was going well, it caused everyone else to do good. We were doing a read option and our quarterback is fast, too. They literally didn't know who had the ball."
Williams predicts Arkansas' sell-out crowd will leave happy Saturday.
"I really, really, really think we're going to upset Alabama," he said.
Others expected to take official visits Arkansas this weekend includes: Michigan safety commitment J'Marick Woods, 6-4, 205, 4.6, of Florence, Ala.; Oklahoma State defensive end commitment Nelson Mbanasor, 6-3, 265, 4.9, of Pflugerville (Texas) Hendrickson; and Arkansas linebacker commitment Josh Paul, 6-2, 205, 4.76, of New Orleans De La Salle.
E-mail Richard Davenport at rdavenport@arkansasonline.com
Sports on 10/04/2016
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