The Recruiting Guy

Arkansas coaches put full-court press on Georgia wing

Arkansas head coach Eric Musselman reacts to a call in the first half of an NCAA college basketball game against Vanderbilt in the Southeastern Conference Tournament Wednesday, March 11, 2020, in Nashville, Tenn. (AP Photo/Mark Humphrey)

ESPN 4-star prospect Chance Moore hasn’t visited the University of Arkansas, but that hasn’t hurt his interest level thanks to the Hogs’ aggressive recruiting and Zoom calls.

He communicates with Coach Eric Musselman, associate head coach David Patrick, and assistants Corey Williams and Clay Moser while also exchanging text messages with director of basketball operations Anthony Ruta.

Moore said staying in touch with five staff members isn’t the norm with other schools.

“No, no, no, they’re coming pretty hard,” Moore said of Arkansas.

Moore, 6-5, 175 pounds, of Powder Springs (Ga.) McEachern, has 15 scholarship offers from schools such as Arkansas, LSU, Auburn, Alabama, Georgia, Florida State, Georgia Tech, Florida, Ole Miss, Clemson, South Carolina and others.

ESPN rates him the No. 8 small forward and No. 43 overall prospect for the 2021 class. The Razorbacks are recruiting Moore as a wing.

The high level of engagement with the Arkansas staff makes him feel like a priority.

“That makes me really feel like they really want me and are really interested in me, and they’re telling me I could be an impact player,” said Moore, who shoots up to 500 shots a day. “Get playing time as a freshman. I’ve already done a couple of Zoom calls. They showed me all of the facilities and campus.”

A virtual tour in May with Musselman and the entire staff allowed Moore and his parents to get a look at the Jerry and Gene Jones academic center, basketball performance center and Walton Arena.

“I think it was like the academic building was connected to the the food hall,” said Moore, who has a 3.1 grade-point average. “It looked really, really nice. It looked pretty new. The boys have their own practice gym and of course the main court. Everything looked good.”

Moore, who is interested in majoring in business, came away highly impressed with the academic center.

“I also like that they have their own tutoring rooms, and each player can get as much help as they need and coach said the professors can be really flexible when they travel,” Moore said. “It really seems like it [the center] really benefits the players.”

Moore visited LSU, Alabama, Georgia, Georgia Tech and Florida State before the coronavirus pandemic forced the NCAA to adopt a dead period that forbids visits to college campuses. It started March 13.

Moore still plans to make a trip to Fayetteville to check out the area despite not being allowed to interact with the coaching staff and tour the facilities or campus.

“My dad and I are supposed to fly out to Arkansas in early August to just see the city,” Moore said. “Just get a lay of the land.”

From a scale of a one to 10, Moore revealed his level of interest in the Razorbacks.

“I’m pretty interested in Arkansas, I would say like an eight-and-a-half,” Moore said.

Moore said he plans to announce his college decision before the start of his senior season.