Receiver knows Hogs mean business

LITTLE ROCK — Arkansas freshman receiver Mekale McKay may not have ended up at Arkansas if it weren’t for his grandmother.

Since he was 4, McKay and his two younger sisters were raised by their grandmother, Lillian Johnson, and McKay credits her as a big reason why he is where he is today.

“There’s no telling where I would be without my grandmother,” said McKay, who reported to Fayetteville in early June and went through his first practice with the Razorbacks on Thursday. “She watched over me my whole life, and now she knows it’s time to let go.

“It’s going to be hard, but I think everything happens for a reason.”

McKay, 6-6, 190 pounds, 4.4 seconds in the 40-yard dash, played at Louisville (Ky.) Moore High School and was a late addition to Arkansas’ 2012 recruiting class. He signed with the Razorbacks on March 8 after considering approximately 16 scholarship offers from schools such as Ole Miss, Kentucky, Louisville, Tennessee and Illinois.

“We grew up in a church home. She just really raised us right,” McKay said. “She had high expectations for us and she believed we could be the best we could be.”

McKay said he is ready for a new chapter in his life.

“Being a Razorback is one of the awesome things that’s happened in my life, and I’m really grateful for it,” he said.

McKay, a two-sport athlete, committed to play football at Texas-El Paso in October and had plans to play basketball for the Miners, but he reopened his recruiting shortly before national signing day. That led to a barrage of inquiries from other schools, but Arkansas offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach Paul Petrino swayed him toward the Razorbacks.

“Everyone started calling,” said McKay, who also hopes to play basketball at Arkansas. “I had LSU, Alabama, Illinois, Florida calling. Those calls just didn’t seem the same as when I talked to Coach Petrino. Those calls were really different.

“One thing I noticed with him was the sound of his voice. He meant business. He needed someone to come in that he knew was going to work hard for him.”McKay, who recorded 38 receptions for 894 yards and 13 touchdowns as a senior, also had about seven basketball scholarship offers after averaging 15 points and 6.4 rebounds per game. He and Derek Willis, a member of the 2013 class who already has committed to the University of Kentucky, were named co-players of the year for Kentucky’s Sixth Region.

Petrino said there are times when a coach connects easily with a prospect, like he did with McKay.

“He and I just kind of naturally had a real good bond,” Petrino said. “He’s going to be a great player before it’s all said and done. He might be a little bit more raw than some of the other guys. It might be a year from now, but he’s going to be a great player here.”

McKay said the atmosphere during his official visit Feb. 24-26 also played a big part in his decision.

“I just liked the Razorback culture, how everything works,” he said. “Once I got to Fayetteville, I noticed it’s one thing. It’s your family. “

Still, even though McKay has settled in at Fayetteville, he said he always will be grateful to his grandmother.

“When I was younger, there’s a lot of things that go through a young man’s mind, and she knew exactly how to talk to me,” McKay said. “I know I can go to her anytime and tell her anything.

“She was always there cheering me on during games, making signs just so I would know where she was in the crowd.”