University of Arkansas linebacker target Parker Meese could have an argument for being the hottest name among 2025 prospects nationally.
He has 14 scholarship offers with more expected in the near future and many others to come over the next three years of his high school career.
Meese, 6-2, 215 pounds, of Parish Episcopal High School in Dallas, received his sixth scholarship offer from Arkansas on June 8 and has since seen Arizona State, Syracuse, Virginia Tech, North Carolina, Missouri, BYU, Boston College and others offer.
He had offers from Oregon, Arizona, Louisville and others prior to the Hogs offering. Razorback linebackers coach Michael Scherer informed Meese of the offer from the Razorbacks.
“I had a great conversation with him,” Meese said. “It was just amazing because that’s a school that’s SEC and they’re always a top team every year, so it was a big offer for me. It was real exciting.”
Meese, who played as a freshman at Prestonwood Christian Academy in Plano, Texas, followed up the offer from the Hogs with a visit to Fayetteville on June 24 with his parents.
“I had a great conversation with Coach [Sam] Pittman and Coach Scherer,” he said. “They’re real nice people. I love the campus. The campus is amazing. It was a really great experience with the coaches and the facility was amazing. I don’t think it could’ve gone better.”
The trip to Arkansas was his first college visit.
“The weight room is awesome,” Meese said. “The stadium was unbelievable. I love the locker rooms. They were awesome, too. The whole area, the town and everything is just amazing. I loved it.”
Parker’s father, James Meese, comes from a football family. His grandfather and ather both played running back at Fresno State and Cal State Fullerton, respectively. His freshman highlight video shows above average suddenness and speed while also showing nice instincts.
Three Arkansas linebackers — Bumper Pool, Hayden Henry and Grant Morgan — had 100 tackles or more last season. Seeing that helps make Arkansas even more attractive to Meese.
“For me being a linebacker, that’s the most impressive thing to me,” Meese said. “Knowing maybe if I went there, I would know the defensive style they [linebackers] make most of the plays.”
Meese, who has a 3.2 grade-point average, said he has a nice vibe with Scherer, who played linebacker at Missouri from 2012-16 and had 266 tackles in 38 games.
“I got to talk to him a lot about the main responsibilities for linebackers in their defense,” Meese said, “I had a great conversation with him and he’s a really nice guy.”