Arkansas signed 16 high school athletes on Wednesday, the first day of the early signing period. Below is a profile of each future Razorback.
QUARTERBACK
KJ JACKSON
HEIGHT/WEIGHT 6-4, 222 pounds
SCHOOL Montgomery (Ala.) St. James
STAR STATUS
ON3.COM (★★★) No. 45 quarterback in the nation, No. 26 prospect in Alabama; ESPN.COM (★★★) No. 26 pocket passer quarterback in the nation, No. 32 prospect in Alabama; 247 SPORTS (★★★★) No. 18 quarterback in the nation, No. 19 prospect in Alabama; TOM LEMMING (★★★★)
STATS: As a senior, completed 147 of 259 pass for 2,951 yards, 43 touchdowns, 5 interceptions, 147 rushes for 665 yards, 14 touchdowns. As a junior, completed 132 of 205 passes for 2,813 yards, 42 touchdowns against 7 interceptions, rushed 77 times for 171 yards, 6 touchdowns.
NOTEWORTHY: January enrollee. … Left-handed. … Led team to the school’s first state championship as a junior. … Broke his own school record for touchdowns in a season with 43 this season. 130 career passing touchdowns is third in Alabama high school history. … Team captain. … Recruited by offensive coordinator Bobby Petrino
ARKANSAS OVER: North Carolina, Penn State, Mississippi, Louisville, Missouri, Kentucky, West Virginia, Kansas and other programs.
RUNNING BACK
BRAYLEN RUSSELL
HEIGHT/WEIGHT 6-1, 240 pounds
SCHOOL Benton
STAR STATUS
ON3.COM (★★★) No. 42 running back in the nation, No. 10 prospect in Arkansas; ESPN.COM (★★★★) No. 16 running back, No. 237 overall prospect in the nation, No. 3 prospect in Arkansas; 247 SPORTS (★★★★) No. 23 running back in the nation, No. 4 prospect in Arkansas; TOM LEMMING (★★★★)
STATS: As a senior, 167 rushes for 1,359 yards, 20 touchdowns, 18 catches for 351yards, 5 touchdowns, 1 passing touchdown. As a junior, 240 rushes for 1,685 yards, 26 touchdowns, 22 receptions for 224 yards, 1 touchdown
NOTEWORTHY: January enrollee. … Received Arkansas offer in June prior to sophomore season after recording handheld 4.52 seconds in the 40-yard dash at Hog camp. … Committed to Razorbacks during sophomore season, reopened recruitment about a year later only to commit again prior to senior season. … 325-pound bench press, 600-pound squat, 295-pound power clean, 4.49 seconds in 40 yard dash, 4.27 seconds in pro-agility. … Recruited by running backs coach Jimmy Smith
ARKANSAS OVER: South Carolina, Baylor, Texas A&M, Tennessee and others
OFFENSIVE LINEMEN
KOBE BRANHAM
HEIGHT/WEIGHT 6-5, 323 pounds
SCHOOL Fort Smith Southside
STAR STATUS
ON3.COM (★★★) No. 142 interior offensive lineman in the nation, No. 13 prospect in Arkansas; ESPN.COM (★★★) No. 40 offensive guard in the nation, No. 7 prospect in Arkansas; 247 SPORTS (★★★) No. 89 interior offensive lineman in the nation, No. 15 prospect in Arkansas; TOM LEMMING (★★★)
STATS: Graded out at 94.3%, 56 pancake blocks and allowed no sacks
NOTEWORTHY: January enrollee. … 385-pound bench press, 520-pound deadlift and a 500-pound squat. … Received Texas A&M offer from Bobby Petrino, who is now Arkansas’ offensive coordinator. … Recruited by offensive line coach Eric Mateos
ARKANSAS OVER: Texas A&M, Ole Miss, Oklahoma State and SMU
ZURI MADISON
HEIGHT/WEIGHT 6-5, 315 pounds
SCHOOL Lexington, (Ky.) Douglass
STAR STATUS
ON3.COM (★★★) No. 96 interior offensive lineman in the nation, No. 8 prospect in Kentucky; ESPN.COM (★★★) No. 47 offensive tackle in the nation, No. 4 prospect in Kentucky; 247 SPORTS (★★★) No. 36 interior offensive lineman in the nation, No. 4 prospect in Kentucky; TOM LEMMING (★★★)
STATS: Graded out with 1.75 grade (1.60 goal), 19 pancake blocks, no sacks allowed
NOTEWORTHY: January enrollee. … Official visits to Arkansas, West Virginia and Miami. … Team captain. … 350-pound bench press, 500-pound squat, 275-pound power clean. … Recruited by offensive line coach Eric Mateos
ARKANSAS OVER: Kentucky, Illinois, Miami, West Virginia, Purdue, Duke, Marshall and others.
RECEIVERS
CJ BROWN
HEIGHT/WEIGHT 6-1, 185 pounds
SCHOOL Bentonville
STAR STATUS
ON3.COM (★★★) No. 87 wide receiver in the nation, No. 8 prospect in Arkansas; ESPN.COM (★★★) No. 81 wide receiver in the nation, No. 8 prospect in Arkansas; 247 SPORTS (★★★) No. 88 wide receiver in the nation, No. 6 prospect in Arkansas; TOM LEMMING (★★★)
STATS: As a senior, 61 catches for 1,370 yards, 16 touchdowns, 2 rushes for 81 yards, 2 touchdowns, completed a pass for 62 yards and a touchdown, returned 5 kickoffs for 373 yards and 3 touchdowns. As a junior, 75 catches for 1,284 yards and 16 touchdowns
NOTEWORTHY: January enrollee. … Born in Cleveland and moved to Minnesota for a short time before moving to Arkansas, where he has lived the past 13 years. … Sister Jada plays basketball at Vanderbilt. … Recruited by receivers coach Kenny Guiton
ARKANSAS OVER: Tennessee, Minnesota, Kansas State, Louisville, Oklahoma State, Vanderbilt, Purdue and others.
ASHTON BETHEL-ROMAN
HEIGHT/WEIGHT 6-0, 171 pounds
SCHOOL Missouri City (Texas) Ridge Point
STAR STATUS
ON3.COM (★★★★) No. 50 wide receiver in the nation, No. 51 prospect in Texas; ESPN.COM (★★★★) No. 28 wide receiver and No. 207 overall prospect in the nation, No. 32 prospect in Texas; 247 SPORTS (★★★★) No. 24 wide receiver and No. 113 overall prospect in the nation, No. 21 prospect in Texas; TOM LEMMING (★★★★)
STATS: As a senior, 49 catches for 964 yards, 9 touchdowns, 4 rushes for 28 yards, 1 touchdown, 8 punt returns for 205 yards, 1 touchdown. As a junior, 37 catches for 892 yards and 8 touchdowns
NOTEWORTHY: Best of 21.51 seconds in 200 meters and 22 feet, 10 inches in the long jump. Also ran legs on the 400 and 800 meter relays. … Father Mark Roman was an All-SEC defensive back for LSU who spent 10 seasons with Cincinnati Bengals, Green Bay Packers and San Francisco 49ers. … officially visited Texas A&M last weekend….Recruited by receivers coach Kenny Guiton
ARKANSAS OVER: Texas A&M, Texas Tech, Oregon, Nebraska, Ole Miss, Purdue, TCU, Baylor, Houston and Kansas State
KROSSE JOHNSON
HEIGHT/WEIGHT 5-10, 170 pounds
SCHOOL New Orleans Holy Cross
STAR STATUS
ON3.COM (NR), ESPN.COM (NR), 247 SPORTS (★★★), TOM LEMMING (★★★)
STATS: as a senior, 36 catches for 650 yards, 8 touchdowns,
NOTEWORTHY: 10.54 seconds in the 100 meters, 21.07 in the 200 and reports running 4.38 seconds in the 40-yard dash. … Flipped commitment from Louisiana-Lafayette to Arkansas. … Recruited by offensive coordinator Bobby Petrino
ARKANSAS OVER: Texas Tech, North Texas, Tulane and Indiana.
ATHLETE
JUJU POPE
HEIGHT/WEIGHT 6-0, 195 pounds
SCHOOL Batesville (Miss.) South Panola
STAR STATUS
ON3.COM (★★★) No. 39 linebacker in the nation, No. 15 prospect in Mississippi; ESPN.COM (★★★) No. 42 linebacker in the nation, No. 14 prospect in Mississippi; 247 SPORTS (★★★★) No. 29 linebacker in the nation, No. 10 prospect in Mississippi; TOM LEMMING (★★★)
STATS: As a senior, 24 rushes for 129 yards, 3 touchdowns, 3 tackles, 1 tackles for loss. s a junior, 82 tackles, 19 tackles for loss, 9 sacks, 1 interception and 9 pass breakups, rushed 41 times for 490 yards, 8 touchdowns.
NOTEWORTHY: January enrollee. … Missed most of senior season due to foot injury. … Could play running back or safety at Arkansas. … Recruited co-defensive coordinator Marcus Woodson and running backs coach Jimmy Smith.
ARKANSAS OVER: Michigan, Alabama, Oregon and Louisville.
DEFENSIVE LINEMEN
KAVION HENDERSON
HEIGHT/WEIGHT 6-2, 253 pounds
SCHOOL Leeds, Ala.
STAR STATUS
ON3.COM (★★★) No. 74 defensive lineman in the nation, No. 31 prospect in Alabama; ESPN.COM (★★★★) No. 18 defensive end, No. 130 overall prospect in the nation, No. 10 prospect in Alabama; 247 SPORTS (★★★★) No. 36 defensive lineman in the nation, No. 16 prospect in Alabama; TOM LEMMING (★★★★)
STATS: As a senior, 45 tackles, 10 tackles for loss, 7 sacks, 2 quarterback hurries, 1 forced fumble
NOTEWORTHY: January enrollee. … Plans to wear No. 6 in honor of his grandfather, who passed away on Nov. 6. … Raised by his grandparents since he was six months old. … Played in Alabama-Mississippi All-Star game. … Selected to play in Under Armour All-American game on Jan. 3 in Orlando, Fla. … Recruited by defensive line coach Deke Adams.
ARKANSAS OVER: Alabama, Georgia, Oklahoma, Auburn
CHARLESTON COLLINS
HEIGHT/WEIGHT 6-5, 261
SCHOOL Mills
STAR STATUS
ON3.COM (★★★★) No. 8 defensive lineman, No. 67 overall prospect in the nation, No. 1 prospect in Arkansas; ESPN.COM (★★★★) No. 15 defensive tackle, No. 232 overall prospect in the nation, No. 2 prospect in Arkansas; 247 SPORTS (★★★★) No. 16 defensive lineman, No. 93 overall prospect in the nation, No. 2 prospect in Arkansas; TOM LEMMING (★★★★+)
STATS: As a senior, 115 tackles, 31 tackles for loss, 12 sacks, 4 pass deflections, 3 forced fumbles, 1 recovered fumble, 1 blocked extra point, 8 yards receiving touchdown, 12 rushes for 49 yards, 3 touchdowns, as junior, 124 tackles, 46 tackles for loss, 12 sacks, 5 recovered fumbles, 4 pass breakups and 1 forced fumble
NOTEWORTHY: January enrollee. … Selected to play in All-American Bowl on Jan. 6 in San Antonio. … On3.com industry average of 92.28 average is highest for Hog signee. … Recruited by defensive line coach Deke Adams
ARKANSAS OVER: Auburn, Georgia, LSU and Oklahoma
LINEBACKERS
JUSTIN LOGAN
HEIGHT/WEIGHT 6-2, 213 pounds
SCHOOL Marietta (Ga.) Kell
STAR STATUS
On3.com (★★★) No. 49 linebacker in the nation, No. 79 prospect in Georgia, ESPN.COM (★★★) No. 22 inside linebacker in the nation, No. 82 prospect in Georgia, 247 SPORTS (★★★) No. 42 linebacker in the nation, No. 53 prospect in Georgia, TOM LEMMING (★★★)
STATS: As a senior, 52 tackles, 2 tackles for loss, 1 sack, 2 quarterback hurries, 3 pass breakups, 2 recovered fumbles, 2 forced fumbles, 1 interceptions. As a junior, 60 tackles.
NOTEWORTHY: January enrollee. … 300-pound bench press, 450-pound squat, 275-pound power clean. … Recruited by linebackers coach Travis Williams
ARKANSAS OVER: Missouri, Colorado, Kentucky, Louisville, Georgia Tech, Boston College, Indiana, North Carolina, West Virginia and others.
WYATT SIMMONS
HEIGHT/WEIGHT 6-1, 213 pounds
SCHOOL Harding Academy
STAR STATUS
ON3.COM (★★★) No. 44 linebacker in the nation, No. 6 prospect in Arkansas; ESPN.COM (★★★) No. 13 inside linebacker in the nation, No. 5 prospect in Arkansas; 247 SPORTS (★★★) No. 51 linebacker in the nation, No. 8 prospect in Arkansas; TOM LEMMING (★★★)
STATS: As a senior, 90 tackles, 12 tackles for loss, 4 sacks, 1 interception, 1 recovered fumble, 24 carries for 100 yards, 8 touchdowns, 1 catch for 22 yards. As a junior, 84 tackles, 15 tackles for loss, 6 sacks, 1 interception and 2 recovered fumbles, rushed 12 times for 61 yards and 1 touchdown, 2 catches for 109 yards and 2 touchdowns
NOTEWORTHY: His father, Paul Simmons, led Harding University to the NCAA Division II national championship this season. … Took official visits to Arkansas, Auburn and Clemson. Made unofficial visits to Ole Miss and Florida State. … Recruited by defensive coordinator Travis Williams
ARKANSAS OVER: Southern Cal, Texas, Florida State, Ole Miss, Oklahoma, South Carolina, Miami, Auburn, Clemson, Illinois, Mississippi State and others
DEFENSIVE BACKS
SELMAN BRIDGES
HEIGHT/WEIGHT 6-2, 163 pounds
SCHOOL Temple (Texas) Lake Belton
STAR STATUS
ON3.COM (★★★) No. 42 cornerback in the nation, No. 70 prospect in Texas; ESPN.COM (★★★★) No. 7 cornerback and No. 69 overall prospect in the nation, No. 11 prospect in Texas; 247 SPORTS (★★★★) No. 8 cornerback and No. 101 overall prospect in the nation, No. 17 prospect in Texas; TOM LEMMING (★★★★+)
STATS: As a senior, 19 tackles, 3 pass breakups, 1 interception, 2 kickoffs for 101 yards. As a junior, 42 tackles, 1 tackle for loss, 6 pass breakups and 2 interceptions, returned 1 interception for a touchdown. As a sophomore, 25 tackles, 2 pass breaks, 1 interception and 1 forced fumble.
NOTEWORTHY: January enrollee. … Also played basketball and ran track. … 92.28 On3.com industry average is second-highest for Hog signee. … Selected to play in All-American Bowl in San Antonio on Jan. 6. … Recruited by co-defensive coordinator Marcus Woodson and secondary coach Deron Wilson,
ARKANSAS OVER: Texas, Alabama, Texas A&M, Miami, Southern Cal, LSU, Oklahoma, Oregon, Penn State, Tennessee and others.
TEVIS METCALF
HEIGHT/WEIGHT 5-10, 181 pounds
SCHOOL Pinson (Ala.) Clay-Chalkville
STAR STATUS
ON3.COM (★★★) No. 19 cornerback in the nation, No. 69 prospect in Alabama; ESPN.COM (★★★) No. 60 cornerback in the nation, No. 34 prospect in Alabama; 247 SPORTS (★★★) No. 88 cornerback in the nation, No. 45 prospect in Alabama; TOM LEMMING (★★★)
STATS: As a senior, 20 tackles, 6 pass breakups, finished with a 92% defensive rating. As a junior, 4 interceptions, 7 pass breakups and allowed 1 reception.
NOTEWORTHY: January enrollee. … Younger brother of Arkansas safety TJ Metcalf and cousin of Seattle Seahawks receiver DK Metcalf. … Helped Clay-Chalkville to the Class 6A state title this season. … Played in U.S. Army Bowl on Monday in Frisco, Texas. … Recruited by Arkansas co-defensive coordinator Marcus Woodson and special teams coordinator Scott Fountain.
ARKANSAS OVER: Auburn, Colorado and Georgia Tech.
JADEN ALLEN
HEIGHT/WEIGHT 5-10, 163 pounds
SCHOOL Aledo, Texas
STAR STATUS
ON3.COM (★★★) No. 95 cornerback in the nation, No. 140 prospect in Texas; ESPN.COM (★★★) No. 70 cornerback in the nation, No. 129 prospect in Texas; 247 SPORTS (★★★) No. 67 cornerback in the nation, No. 112 prospect in Texas; TOM LEMMING (★★★)
STATS: As a senior, 56 tackles, 7 pass breakups, 2 interceptions, 1 blocked punt. As a junior, 48 tackles, 1.5 tackles for loss, half-sack, 3 interceptions, 11 pass breakups, 1 forced fumble and 1 recovered fumble.
NOTEWORTHY: January enrollee. … Helped Aledo to 16-0 record and 5A Division 1 state championship this season, the school’s 12th state title. … Brother B.J. Allen spent two seasons at Texas before recently entering transfer portal. … Recruited by secondary coach Deron Wilson.
ARKANSAS OVER: Alabama, Texas, LSU, Southern Cal, Michigan State, LSU and others.
AHKHARI JOHNSON
HEIGHT/WEIGHT 5-11, 179 pounds
SCHOOL Texarkana (Texas) Pleasant Grove
STAR STATUS
ON3.COM (★★★) No. 21 athlete in the nation, No. 132 prospect in Texas; ESPN.COM (★★★) No. 102 cornerback in the nation, No. 172 prospect in Texas; 247 SPORTS (★★★) No. 117 athlete in the nation, No. 176 prospect in Texas; TOM LEMMING (★★★)
STATS: As a senior, completed 135 of 209 passes for 2,274 yards, 32 touchdowns, 6 interceptions, 126 rushes for 857 yards, 18 touchdowns. As a junior, completed 86 of 170 passes for 1,710 yards and 21 touchdowns and rushed 117 times for 856 yards and 12 touchdowns.
NOTEWORTHY: January enrollee. … 7-4A district MVP as a senior. … Was recruited by various schools to play running back, wide receiver, defensive back. … Pleasant Grove Coach Josh Gibson calls him the best athlete he’s coached in 22 years. … Recruited by co-defensive coordinator Marcus Woodson and secondary coach Deron Wilson.
ARKANSAS OVER: TCU, Oklahoma State, Nebraska, Arizona State, Texas Tech, Vanderbilt, Missouri, Minnesota, Kansas State and other schools.