Well since Thomas from Jonesboro has signed with Ole Miss and Wilkins has signed with OU can you give us the story behind them not visiting or considering the hogs?
D Thomas was not deemed to be an SEC quality player by this staff. Look like Tarzan but plays like Jane. The description “ not good at all” was associated with him.
What was the deal with Wilkins? My Ou friend said they he’d been on him a long time. I asked - cash or credit? :lol:
Hope Jane doesn’t turn into All SEC.
I guess we will know in a few years.
Yep -he does indeed look like Tarzan. Looks like an SEC linemen is supposed to look.
I’m not sure that is 100% true, the staff felt that he didn’t fit their “scheme” as well as others, and they slow played him. He was ready to get recruiting over with, and went closer to home. We’ll see how it turns out for him in the next 4 years.
I remember watching a good-on-good competition between ‘elite’ offensive and defensive linemen earlier this year at one of the prestigious camps - the Mobilehoma commit was not impressive. He got smoked several times. And did you notice how much his star ranking improved once he committed to Sooners?
I have zero inside information but from reading between the lines I assume he was highly influenced by his HS coach who is from Oklahoma.
Just my guess.
I had a staff member tell me this at the signing day event. It was prompted by a question from my father when he asked the coach if the staff feels pressure to sign players from in state that are highly ranked by the recruiting services but not high on their board. He went on to share an interesting story:
Said a certain in state school with a former long time Razorback coach on staff offered him, but the offer was not commitable and never would be.
This coach knew that would ratchet up the heat on the Hogs to offer, and he said “ we just didn’t think he was very good.” Gamesmanship at its finest and he said that kind of stuff happens a lot.
Same coach also said Notre Dame came in hard on Bush, but he thought we’d hold on to him. He was right
The opportunity to visit one on one with the staff prior to the signing day event official program was the highlight of the evening for me.
Assuming you mean a certain out of state school. Auburn most likely or Georgia. I can think of a couple of high rated DB prospects we have signed from in state under similar circumstances in the past. Anyone want to guess the two I am talking about.
You are in to something! 
D Winston one of them?
Bingo on the most overrated prospect that I can ever remember coming out of Arkansas. The QB out of Clarksville would be a good guess but not a DB.
One of my good friends used to coach at Camden, now has moved on and has a new job. But, I talked to him about Wilkins when his offers started coming in, and he told me that he didn’t really understand the offers. He said he had size but was very weak for his size and said he was soft. Everything I’ve seen backs that up. He also told me very early on he would be going to Oklahoma but don’t expect him to do much while there.
We’ll know in a few years, who was right, and who was wrong. He signed with a SEC school, so he’s as “SEC” worthy as any of our OL signees.
I never said he was SEC worthy or not - saying this coach said he wasn’t very good and certainly not worthy of an Arkansas offer in THEIR OPINION. He did say the kid never had a legit Auburn offer as was widely reported.
Having seen him in camps and games, that’s not my opinion.
I think he is going to be a very good college OL.
He went to Oklahoma because he thought it was a better program - which it is.
His coach is not the villian he has been made out to be.
Some times kids just here in the state just want to go to a better program.
Well, we’ve got a commit, or two, that claim offers they have that aren’t “commitable”. His Georgia offer wasn’t “commitable” either, but they, like Auburn, made an offer. You do know that we give out these type of offers, if we fall down far enough on our board, you can commit. So, you’re saying it was a coach that said this? I thought it was a staffer earlier.
Yeah I don’t know and I’m not going to act like I do, just limited film. He definitely has ability, but he’s not strong enough right now for sure.
From him it was more of a mentality and work ethic thing. He told me he was an attention diva at this point still.
We will see. I wish we could’ve gotten him over some of our guys, but if he is soft that’s something that’s pretty hard to break, that’s mental.
Well it worked out great for us as far as Wilkins goes because Cunningham is much better prepared to play next year physically. Wilkins will be okay in a couple of years but he’s got to get much stronger.