FAYETTEVILLE — Little Rock Parkview tight end and Arkansas commit Erin Outley (6-4, 256) established himself as one of the state’s best football players last season, and that led to a recruiting onslaught that afforded him plenty of opportunities.
Outley holds offers from LSU, Georgia, Oregon, Florida, Tennessee, Penn State, Michigan, Georgia Tech, Florida State and many other programs, but he decided Arkansas was the right place for him. He committed on July 11.
To the new Arkansas that is, the one that features head coach Sam Pittman, offensive coordinator Kendel Briles and tight ends coach Jon Cooper.
“I love how they came in and just had a different approach as a coaching staff,” Outley said. “We talked every week, almost every day. We built a great relationship and I think it is just the best for me as a player and a person.
“I came close to going to some other schools, such as Florida State, Georgia, Georgia Tech and Virginia Tech. But we (Outley and the three Arkansas coaches) had a relationship that no one else did. I was just very comfortable with my decision to go to Arkansas. I wanted to stay home, too.”
Outley, who will join quarterback and fellow Razorback pledge Landon Rogers (6-5, 215) in leading the Patriots into their season opener Friday night against Little Rock Southwest (0-1), knows it is a leap of faith to cast his lot with the Razorbacks.
Arkansas has suffered through consecutive two-win seasons, has a 19-game SEC losing streak. It has won just 8 of its last 36 games under previous head coaches Bret Bielema and Chad Morris.
Michigan and Florida State are among the schools still trying to get him to reconsider his pledge and take official visits to check out their programs before signing a letter of intent with Arkansas.
“I feel like it is going to be a better year up there at Arkansas and the program is about to take off in the next few years with these coaches,” Outley said. “There are a lot of good players already there and a lot coming in. I see it turning around real soon.”
Outley, who caught 48 passes for 721 yards and eight touchdowns last season, believes he will be a perfect fit in Briles’ offensive scheme.
“I have been looking at the playbook and I like it all,” Outley said. “It really is similar to what we are running right now at Parkview. I like his style. I can get on the ground and block, be an H-back or split out. I am really excited and ready for the future.”
Outley’s recruitment exploded when a rush of offers came in from December to March.
“It was different,” Outley said. “Everybody started to notice my talent and my play. I just continued to stay humble, work hard and praise God.”
He believes coaches got to see on his junior film that he was an all-around tight end.
“I just wanted to separate myself from the other tight ends,” Outley said. “I didn’t want to be a guy who just does one thing or the other. I wanted to stay on the field and be a guy that a coach can count on for all four downs.”
Outley and Rogers got a lot of workouts in this spring and summer with current and former NFL players such as former Arkansas stars Joe Adams and Jarius Wright, and former Ohio State receiver KJ Hill.
“We had a lot of route running and receiving work and they let me know what it will be like once I get to college. Joe Adams, Jarius Wright and KJ Hill taught me a lot of things, how to take the next step as a player and how to work hard every play.”
Unlike many other Arkansas teams that opened the season last week in what is called Week 0, Parkview was idle.
“We are excited and real hyped up to open the season,” Outley said. “The whole team is just ready to go out there Friday night and put it to the test.”
He admits there were times he thought the covid-19 pandemic might take out his senior season.
“There was a little bit of worry, but I just continued to pray on it and just tried to follow the guidelines so we could have a season,” Outley said.
The Patriots finished 4-7 last season, but suffered through an injury-plagued year that saw junior tailback James Jointer (6-0, 200) go down with a season-ending knee injury in Week 2.
Outley, Rogers and Jointer, who also has an Arkansas offer, should lead a high-powered offense.
“I think our goal is nothing less than a state championship,” Outley said. “That is what we are working toward and for. We want to get to that big stage and perform.”
Outley and Rogers, who would become the first Little Rock School District signees for Arkansas since 2005, are close and will be teammates for the fourth straight year.
“We have a great relationship and he is like another brother to me,” Outley said. “We have been playing together since the ninth grade and had that connection since the ninth grade. He is a versatile quarterback and one of the top quarterbacks in the country to me. He can throw, he can run, he can do a lot of things for you.”
Southwest, a first-year school that combined Little Rock McClellan and JA Fair, lost 36-16 at West Memphis last Friday.
“I saw they kind of got after it that first half,” Outley said. “We have to be ready and perform hard from the first play and do so from whistle to whistle. Our gameplan is to just get with it.”