The football program and academics are natural selling points for University of Arkansas Coach Chad Morris and his staff, but life after football is also a big sell thanks to the Northwest Arkansas economy and quality of life.
The Portland State game on Saturday will be the first of six Fayetteville games for the Hogs to host prospects for visits, and Arkansas executive director of recruiting and personnel Joshua Thompson has plenty to sell.
Fayetteville and the surrounding area give Razorbacks players numerous options after football, said Thompson.
"It's the just the opportunity for the young men following their playing career," Thompson said. "I know every young man thinks he's going to the NFL. That would be nice if that's the case, but it isn't. Only 3 percent actually get to play professional football at the highest level in the NFL."
The Fayetteville-Springdale-Rogers area has seen the population go from 92,069 people in 1960 to 549,128 in 2018, according to the latest U.S. Census Bureau estimates. The bureau estimates Bentonville's population at 51,111, thus giving the area more than 600,000 residents.
The growth has been fueled by one of the nation's strongest economies. The economy of the Fayetteville-Springdale-Rogers area ranked second nationally behind Provo-Orem, Utah, for medium-sized metropolitan areas with a population of 500,000 to 999,999, according to the Walton Family Foundation.
An Arkansas Democrat-Gazette article on June 10, cited such factors as per-capita personal income, short-term and medium-term job growth, short-term and medium-term income growth.
Morris and Thompson take advantage of the Fortune 500 companies headquartered in the area and the numerous Fortune 500 companies with satellite offices.
"We have a 1st and 10 symposium that we host every year, and there's members from Tyson, Walmart, JB Hunt," Thompson said. "You name it. They come and spend time with our young men and tell them the different things that are available for them outside of football once their playing days are over."
Thompson believes Arkansas affords student-athletes a unique opportunity after graduation.
"One thing you see here that I believe is really unique compared to a lot of other programs, not only in the SEC, but in the country, is just the simple fact that a lot of guys graduate from here and then they get jobs in this area," Thompson said. "They stay here and they raise a family here because there's tons of opportunity in this area because of the amount of companies located here. That's huge in recruiting of any prospect. We have a plan and we have a path we can show you and a blue print that we can show you to be successful if football doesn't work out."
Fayetteville was named in the spring as one of the five best places to live in the nation by U.S. News & World Report for the fourth year in a row. The rankings list Fayetteville the fourth-best place to live in the nation, No. 1 in the SEC and No. 2 among all Power 5 schools for the fourth consecutive year.
The Hogs focus on getting prospects to campus which allows the staff to point out the why being a student-athlete at Arkansas is a good choice.
"I promise you if they get here and they not only see our facilities and not only get to see this great town and what the surrounding area has to offer even outside the companies here and life after ball, but also being a college student at the University of Arkansas and how great that can be, we have a real shot," Thompson said.
While Thompson is confident life after football and the quality life in Northwest Arkansas are good selling points, he also believes prospects and parents are won over by Morris and the coaching staff.
"The biggest part is getting them with our coaches and once they see the great men they are and the fathers they are and they way they coach their players the way they would want their sons and daughters coached, we're hard to beat," Thompson said.
Email Richard Davenport at rdavenport@arkansasonline.com
Sports on 08/30/2019