FAYETTEVILLE — Arkansas coach Sam Pittman, in recapping his first signing class as coach of the Razorbacks, said he and his coaching staff honed in on five positions of need between December and February.
Among the areas they wanted to address were quarterback, tight end and each level of the defense.
Amid understandable excitement surrounding the signings of four-star quarterback Malik Hornsby, the No. 9 dual-threat in the country, and offensive linemen Jalen St. John and Marcus Henderson, Arkansas also put the finishing touches on a solid group of defensive backs.
Pittman secured Broken Arrow, Okla., star Myles Slusher in the early signing period and added Nick Turner of Brother Martin in New Orleans and Khari Johnson of Boston, Mass., on Wednesday.
Slusher, an early enrollee, was the prize of the group as a four-star. He chose the Razorbacks over scholarship offers from Alabama, LSU, Oregon and other programs. He has drawn rave reviews from Pittman and defensive coordinator Barry Odom since arriving on campus.
Odom, on Arkansas' National Signing Day show, noted that he recruited Slusher for quite some time while at Missouri and knew what kind of leadership qualities he possessed. Pittman sealed the deal.
"Man, what a super guy, super kid," Pittman said. "To be honest with you, he’s really one of the first highly recruited guys that said, ‘I believe in you.’ I won’t forget that. He’s got to earn his spot, but I like him because of that."
The Razorbacks reached into relatively unfamiliar territory for Johnson, a three-star by 247 Sports and ESPN who chose Arkansas over offers from Georgia, Pittsburgh and Navy. He played on both sides of the ball at Suffield Academy in Connecticut, totaling better than 600 yards of offense while recording 36 tackles, four interceptions and 12 pass breakups in 2019.
Arkansas cornerbacks coach Sam Carter is high on Johnson, who he says has legitimate 4.4 speed and great ball skills.
"From a football aspect, the guys that he’s going against in Connecticut are good guys, it’s just that guys don’t go up there and look at them," Carter said. "Coach Pittman went up there with me and we fell in love with this guy. This guy can cover, he can run and he’s not scared to put his nose in there.
"We’re going to give this kid everything we have, and we know he’s going to give us everything. When you come from Connecticut to come to Arkansas, you’re in. We’re going to give him every opportunity. He’s really good."
Turner, a three-star and the No. 21 player in Louisiana, according to Rivals, is perhaps the fastest prospect in the 2020 class, according to Carter, who noted the 5-11 defensive back ran a 4.34 and 4.37 40-yard dash at an Alabama camp.
Turner, a two-sport athlete in high school, most notably turned down offers from Tennessee, Penn State and Baylor to sign with the Razorbacks.
"Nick is not scared," Carter said. "He’s went against some of the best receivers in the country. He plays on a 7-on-7 team in Louisiana, so he’s played against the best guys. He’s ready to go.
"We called him just to tell him congrats and he’s like, ‘Hey, coach, I’m about to go to school right now and get a workout.’ I was like, ‘Relax, man, it’s signing day.’ Just to have someone that loves ball, that’s what you want."
After allowing a league-high 19 touchdown passes in SEC play in 2019 and the departure of safety Kam Curl, the Razorbacks needed reinforcements in the back end of their defense. This crop of defensive backs has the potential to make a difference, coaches say.
Jerry Jacobs, a cornerback who transferred from Arkansas State, will also bring experience in the secondary. Jacobs was second-team All-Sun Belt Conference after recording 31 tackles, four interceptions and eight pass breakups in 2018.
He suffered an ACL tear against Georgia last September.
When asked for his thoughts on his new defensive backs, Pittman pointed first to collective speed.
"I think we went out and signed some fast people with some size," he added. "I’m really impressed with coach Carter and coach Odom to go out and be able to get a Khari and a Slusher. You know, we had Myles early. Nick Turner, he’s one of those guys I was able to go visit.
"Khari doesn’t have quite the size, (but) he’s got good speed. The other two have got the size and really good speed."