FAYETTEVILLE – At this time last year, Arkansas head coach Chad Morris wasn’t able to enjoy the benefits of the NCAA’s brand-new early signing period. Morris was hired on Dec. 7, 2017, and had just under two weeks to work with before prospects began to sign their National Letters of Intent.
On top of that, he was also trying to hire a staff and worry about filling the remainder of Arkansas’ signing class in February. There wasn’t much time for a head start on the following year’s recruiting class, but things have changed this year.
Arkansas signed 21 additions in the early signing period between Dec. 19-21, and now the Razorbacks are already planning visits for some of their top targets for the Class of 2020 and beyond.
Morris and the Hogs have set aside seven dates for prospect visit days, or what are commonly referred to as “junior days.”
With only 3-4 spots left to fill for the 2019 signing class, the Razorbacks will double up their official visit weekend of January 26 as an opportunity to host several junior prospects.
The staff will welcome more targets to the Hill a week later, on Saturday, Feb. 2, which is just four days before the more traditional National Signing Day.
Four days after putting the finishing touches on the 2019 haul, on Feb. 10, a third prospect day will be held in Fayetteville.
Arkansas’ staff will then receive a much-needed break prior to hosting its major underclassmen visit date on Saturday, Feb. 23.
Much like last spring, Morris and the Hogs plan to use every practice date as an opportunity to host prospects, but the designated dates of note include March 2, March 9, and March 30 – all of which fall on the weekend.
After signing a top 20 class for the 2019 cycle, the Razorbacks hope to get off to a faster start than they did a year ago when only two players jumped on board in the first four months of the calendar year.
Ideally, Arkansas would like to receive somewhere around 4-6 commitments before spring practices come to an end in late March. In the meantime, there’s still work to be done on finishing off the Class of 2019.
The Razorbacks won’t have any official visitors in town this weekend, but plan to welcome some of their top remaining targets, as well as longtime commits who haven’t yet used their official visits, over the next three weekends.
One of the more anticipated visits will come from Dyersburg (Tenn.) linebacker Chris Russell, who was offered by the Hogs last summer but has received new offers from Tennessee, Auburn, and Texas A&M down the final stretch. Russell, 6-2, 220, will be in Fayetteville on the weekend of Jan. 25-27.
Arkansas is also still in hot pursuit of two other heavily-recruited defensive targets in four-star safety Jalen Catalon of Mansfield (Texas) Legacy, and four-star junior college linebacker Lakia Henry of Dodge City (Kan.) Dodge City C.C.
Catalon, 5-10, 190, will take his final official visit at TCU this weekend and hasn’t yet determined when he will make a decision between Arkansas, Texas, Oklahoma and the Horned Frogs.
Henry, 6-2, 220, de-committed from the Tennessee Volunteers over the weekend and still plans to take at least one more official visit, at Florida State, before coming to a final decision. The Vidalia (Ga.) native took an official visit at Arkansas in early November.
In addition to the remaining defensive targets, the Razorbacks are still on the market for a graduate-transfer at quarterback to join early signee KJ Jefferson of Sardis (Miss.) North Panola.