Hard work and relationship building helped Arkansas land the commitment of safety Jayden Johnson on Thanksgiving.
Johnson, 6-2, 205 pounds, of Cedartown, Ga., chose the Razorbacks over scholarship offers from South Carolina, Georgia Tech, Oklahoma, Kansas State, Virginia and others. He committed to the Gamecocks in June and reopened his recruitment Nov. 24.
Arkansas defensive coordinator Barry Odom and cornerbacks coach Sam Carter offered Johnson on April 23 and kept recruiting him after his pledge to South Carolina.
“The coaches. they built very great relationships with my family and (me),” Johnson said. “Also, I felt wanted.”
Johnson, who's expected to be a midterm graduate and enroll at Arkansas in January, has a 290-pound bench press, 310-pound power clean and 475-pound squat.
He rushed 48 times for 347 yards and 5 touchdowns, and had 17 receptions for 336 yards and 3 touchdowns prior to Arabia Mountain canceling Friday’s first-round playoff game against Cedartown due to covid-19 issues.
Defensively, Johnson has 17 tackles, 3 interceptions, a pass deflection, a forced fumble and a recovered fumble. He has returned 7 kickoffs for 128 yards and 2 punts for 12 yards.
Cedartown coach Jamie Abrams said Johnson has a lot of potential.
“I think he has a very high ceiling,” Abrams said, “He’s very strong weight-room wise. I think his best football is ahead of him, and he’s young. He just turned 17.”