Northern Kentucky guard Jalen Tate committed to the University of Arkansas on Friday, becoming the second graduate transfer to commit to the Razorbacks this month.
Tate and former New Mexico forward Vance Jackson will be eligible to play at Arkansas next season.
Tate, 6-6, 180 pounds, chose Arkansas over interest from Cincinnati, Ohio State, Central Florida, Kansas State, Gonzaga and others. The more than 14,000 Razorbacks fans in attendance for Arkansas' early-season 66-60 win over Northern Kentucky made a big impact on him.
“The opportunity to play in front of such a storied fan base, man, honestly, first and foremost,” said Tate, who missed the game with a broken left hand. “I wasn’t able to play, but when Northern Kentucky played against Arkansas this year, it wasn’t like a huge sellout crowd like you might see against UK or something like that, but it was definitely great that they came out like that in the middle of November.”
Coach Eric Musselman, the roster and incoming prospects also influenced Tate’s decision.
“Coach Muss, man, and the group of guys they have coming back and coming in was definitely a great fit for me,” said Tate, who told Musselman of his decision Thursday night.
A native of Pickerington, Ohio, Tate averaged 13.9 points, 5.4 rebounds and 3.6 assists as a redshirt junior while playing 30.2 minutes per game this past season for the Norse. He missed eight other games with the injured hand.
Tate is an excellent defender with the ability to guard 1-3. He was named to the Horizon League All-Defensive Team in 2018 and 2019. He also made the Horizon League All-Freshman Team.
“I take a lot of pride on that side of the ball,” said Tate, who also made the Horizon League All-Freshman Team. “I feel like it impacts winning the most and that’s what I’m about, man - winning championships. I haven’t had a year yet where I haven’t won one. I hope we can have that kind of success going forward.”
His game is said to be similar to Charlotte Hornets forward Cody Martin, who played for Musselman at Nevada. Martin is known as a good defender, athletic and good scorer.
Tate's father, Jermaine Tate, played for Ohio State and Cincinnati before having a 13-year professional career overseas. His brother, Jae’sean, was a forward for Ohio State in 2014-2018.
Musselman has been active recruiting transfers since he was hired as Arkansas' coach last year. He added transfers Abayomi Iyiola, Connor Vanover and JD Notae, along with graduate transfers Jimmy Whitt and Jeantal Cylla before his first season in Fayetteville.