St. Louis (Mo.) St. Mary’s 3-star junior tailback Jamal Roberts (6-0, 190) felt the love during his visit to Arkansas on Saturday and plans to come back.
Roberts, who has been timed at 4.47 seconds in the 40-yard dash, made his first trip to Fayetteville and felt a quick bond with Razorbacks running back coach Jimmy Smith and Sam Pittman.
“The visit went great,” Roberts said. “I felt very at home with the coaching and recruiting staff. Coach Smith made me feel like a priority throughout the visit, which I really appreciated.”
As a junior, Roberts rushed for 928 yards and 13 touchdowns, including a 93-yard score among his 170 yards and 2 touchdowns in a Class 3 state playoff semifinal game.
Roberts had 12 carries for 114 yards in leading St. Mary’s (12-1) to the Class 3 state title with a 56-0 win over Kansas City (Mo.) St. Pius X on December 4.
“For me, the highlights were meeting the coaching staff, including Coach Smith and head coach Pittman, who I had not met personally before,” Roberts said. “Additionally, learning about the rich tradition and pride of Arkansas football was very enlightening.
“Lastly, experiencing the state-of-the-art facilities and the photoshoot in uniform was also exciting."
Roberts has offers from Arizona State, Florida State, Miami (Ohio), Western Michigan and Lindenwood University in St. Louis, and interest from Arkansas, Missouri and Cincinnati.
“After visiting the campus and meeting with the coaching staff it is safe to say I’m highly interested in playing SEC football, especially at University of Arkansas,” Roberts said