Springdale Har-Ber defensive tackle Josh Frazier narrowed his list of prospective schools to five Thursday, and Arkansas made the cut.
Frazier, 6-4, 334 pounds, 5.1 seconds in the 40-yard dash, also has Alabama, Southern Cal, Texas A&M and Georgia among his top five. He said he likes the Razorbacks because of the many friends he has made while going to school in Northwest Arkansas.
“It’s not mainly the coaches, but mostly I guess the experience I’ve had my whole life in Arkansas,” said Frazier, who has scholarship offers from nine schools. “It’s mainly the friendships and the relationships I’ve built with everyone. All of my friends are mainly going to go to the University of Arkansas.”
Frazier’s respect for Arkansas defensive line coach Charlie Partridge and the work he has done with linemen, including NFL Defensive Player of the Year JJ Watt, in another reason Arkansas made the cut.
“I really think Coach Partridge, if I were to go to Arkansas, he could probably craft me up to be the best defensive lineman I can be and possibly go to the NFL,” Frazier said. “I’m not just looking for a championship school but looking for a leader and a coach that can drive me to be the best lineman and develop me technique wise so I could get off blocks and make plays.”
Frazier said that his mother Donna, a Texas native, is letting him make his own decision. She did favor Arkansas at one point, Frazier said, but now she likes Texas A&M.
“My mom wants me to go to Texas A&M now because my family and everyone is down there,” Frazier said. “She got a chance to talk to him [Texas A&M defensive line coach Terry Price] and really thinks he’s genuine, not that Arkansas isn’t genuine.”
National recruiting analyst Tom Lemming of CBS Sport Network rates Frazier as the No. 89 prospect in the nation but sees room for improvement.
“He has good potential but needs to keep working hard,” Lemming said. “He needs to play like he has no offers on every down.”
FLORIDA CONNECTION
Arkansas signed four prospects from South Florida in the 2013 class and are in pursuit of several other top prospects from that area, including cornerback Chris Lammons of Plantation, Fla.
“My level of interest in Arkansas is great,” Lammons said.
Lammons, 5-10 1/2, 171 pounds, 4.37 seconds in the 40-yard dash, has scholarship offers from approximately 20 schools, including Arkansas, Alabama, South Carolina and Tennessee. His interest in Arkansas stems from his relationship with defensive line coach Charlie Partridge, who is a 1991 graduate of Plantation High School.
“I really like him,” Lammons said. “They’re definitely one of the schools I’ll be looking deeper into. Most definitely I’ll take a visit to Arkansas this summer. He said they really want me to come up there to check them out this summer. I told him I would.”
Lammons also hopes to visit Alabama, South Carolina and Tennessee this summer.
TIGHT WITH LUNNEY
Avery Edwards of Raleigh (N.C.) Ravenscroft School has a lot of interest in Arkansas because of the way Coach Bret Bielema used his tight ends while at Wisconsin and because of his relationship with tight ends coach Barry Lunney Jr.
“I know Coach Bielema has had some great tight ends at Wisconsin,” Edwards said. “So if I go there the offense is definitely tight end-friendly. I might not be catching 60 or 70 balls a season, but I know that I’ll be preparing myself for the next level and preparing to help myself by helping the team that’s going to be successful, because I know all these coaches are winning coaches.”
Edwards, 6-5, 230 pounds, 4.6 seconds in the 40-yard dash, has scholarship offers from 10 schools, including North Carolina, North Carolina State, Pittsburgh and Arkansas, which is his lone offer from an SEC school.
“I think if you talk to a kid that wants to play football, the SEC is definitely the football conference,” said Edwards, who plans to visit Fayetteville this summer.
Edwards likes what he’s heard from Lunney, who is expected to visit his school today.
“He sounds like a great guy, sounds young, straightforward,” Edwards said. “That’s what I like, sounds like a great coach. You really can’t find a negative with Coach Lunney.”
E-mail Richard Davenport at [email protected]
Sports, Pages 25 on 05/24/2013