It's well known that University of Arkansas super fan Canaan Sandy and his mother Ginger travel the region showing support to Razorbacks commitments and prospects in several sports.
Sandy and his mother made their longest trip yet when they traveled from Cave City to Montgomery, Alabama on Monday to watch running back commitment A'Montae Spivey and quarterback signee KJ Jefferson at the Mississippi-Alabama All Star game.
Spivey, 6-1, 207 pounds, 4.4 seconds in the 40-yard dash, of Phenix City (Ala.) Central, committed to the Hogs on Aug. 6 after holding scholarship offers from LSU, Purdue, Cincinnati and others.
He was taken aback by Sandy traveling more than seven hours and 450 miles to watch him and Jefferson.
"It's crazy, it shows how much support the Arkansas fan base gives to a player that commits," Spivey said.
Spivey knew of Sandy, who was inducted into the ESPN Fan Hall of Fame in 2014, from Twitter. He said Sandy notified him of plans to make the trip to Alabama via direct message on Twitter.
"He told me the day of that he was coming down," Spivey said. "I was excited because I have seen him on Twitter before so I knew he was a big Arkansas fan so the opportunity to meet him would be amazing."
Because there wasn't a neutral area to sit, Sandy ended up on the Mississippi side of the stadium, which made it difficult for Sandy and Spivey to meet up after the game. A day later, Spivey and his mother Lateisha Floyd reached out to Sandy.
"I told him I appreciated him coming out and supporting me and driving that far away," Spivey said.
Spivey's mother was equally impressed that Canaan and his mother made the effort to see her son and Jefferson.
"I thought it was so sweet that he wanted to come and support Montae and KJ," Floyd said. "He's awesome. WPS mad respect to Mrs. Ginger and Canaan for coming to Alabama to support."
The Sandys' red Ford Focus that was donated to them in October from a central Arkansas dealership now has more than 7,000 miles after the trip. The car is used solely for attending Razorbacks events, while their previous vehicle, a 2000 Nissan Pathfinder with more than 403,000 miles, is still used for everyday travels.
Spivey was the bell cow for the Red Devils as they went 14-0 this past season and won the Class 7A state title for the first time since 1993. He rushed 183 times for 1,363 yards and 18 touchdowns prior to the title game.
He said the support of the Razorbacks fans inspired him and his parents during his official visit for the Alabama game in October.
"How much they believe in what Coach [Chad] Morris is building and what we can do when we come in is just amazing," Spivey said.
Spivey doesn't plan to sign during the early signing period that started Wednesday and ends today. He has plans to officially visit Ole Miss on Jan. 25.
"It's just a visit," Spivey said. "People shouldn't look too hard into it."
He admires Sandy's enthusiasm for the Razorbacks.
"He's an amazing kid," Spivey said. "You can't do anything but respect him. He goes out of his way like everyday to support the Razorbacks."
Bush to sign today
Cornerback Devin Bush, who has been committed to Arkansas since Nov. 11, announced on Twitter on Thursday what appears to be plans to sign at 5 pm today, though he didn't indicate with whom.
He appeared to be waiting to sign until Feb. 6. The early signing period started Wednesday and ends today.
Bush, 6-0, 187 pounds, of New Orleans Edna Karr has reported scholarship offers from Arkansas, Virginia, LSU, Oklahoma, Clemson, Florida, Tennessee, Auburn, Georgia, Florida State and numerous others. He officially visited the Hogs and Virginia.
ESPN rates him a 4-star prospect, No. 16 cornerback and No. 219 overall prospect in the nation.
Cornerbacks coach Mark Smith and safeties coach Ron Cooper headed up Bush's recruitment.
Email Richard Davenport at rdavenport@arkansasonline.com
Sports on 12/21/2018