University of Arkansas Coach Sam Pittman and offensive coordinator Kendal Briles will have help in recruiting junior quarterback Kyron Drones.
Drones, 6-3, 200 pounds, of Pearland (Texas) Shadow Creek received a scholarship offer from the Hogs on Jan. 30 after Pittman and Briles visited the school. He also has offers from Missouri, Houston, Tulsa, Utah State, Southern Miss and others.
Kyron Drones highlights
His father, Kevin, who's the defensive line coach at the school, called his cousin -- former Razorback quarterback Greg Thomas -- to tell him about the offer.
"I called him, and he answered the phone and was kind of hyper," Kevin Drones said. "He said, 'What's going on? and I said, 'Well, had a great meeting with Coach Pittman and Coach Briles today and they offered.' And he was like, 'Did he commit?' "
Thomas, whose Hogs' teams were 35-13-1 from 1984-87, described his sales pitch to his younger cousin.
"Football wise, it is a great opportunity to come in with a new coaching staff, learn the system and earn some playing time," Thomas said. "It would be special for him to play on the Hill, and I would definitely attend some games."
Kevin Drones said he, his son, wife and daughter plan to travel to Fayetteville for a visit in the spring.
"We'll definitely make it up there," Drones said. "We're excited. I've never been to Fayetteville. I have some friends that played at Arkansas."
Kyron Drones led the Sharks to a 16-0 record and the Class 5A-I title as a junior. He was named Offensive Most Valuable Player of the state championship game after rushing for 135 yards and 2 touchdowns while completing 10 of 18 passes for 185 yards.
He completed 199 of 345 passes for 3,402 yards and 46 touchdowns while rushing 134 times for 825 yards and 18 touchdowns on the season. Shadow Creek scored more than 40 points in 11 games.
"He probably played only five fourth quarters in 16 games," Kevin Drones said. "Majority of those were blowouts, and he had his pads undone in the third quarter."
The elder Drones is also good friends with former Hogs defensive back Kirk Collins.
"Kirk and I are really good friends, and Greg is my cousin, so I know about Arkansas," Drones said.
The younger Drones is low key, but the Arkansas offer has him excited about visiting the Hogs.
"He's looking forward to it," Kevin Drones said. "Kyron is different. If you ask anybody that's watched him, he's always even keel. It's rare that he shows a lot of emotion. Always the same. Almost expressionless.
"When he found out [about the offer], he smiled and instantly tweeted it out. We talked afterward, and he was asking when we were going up there."
The elder Drones noticed an uptick of Razorback fans following his son on Twitter after the state championship game.
"I check Kyron's Twitter and see who's following him," Kevin Drones said. "After the state game, he had like 300 Arkansas fans following him. I don't know what happened, but he had a ton of fans and Kendal goes, 'Well, I got a couple of calls when I first got the job that I needed to come down here and see this quarterback from Arkansas fans.' "
Pittman explained why Razorback fans are so passionate about the football program.
"He said you have to understand there's no pro football in Arkansas or pro basketball," Kevin Drones said. "It's the University of Arkansas. He said, 'They act like I'm somebody around there and ask me for autographs.' "
Kevin Drones was impressed with Pittman during the school visit. He told his father Jerry Drones, who recently retired after coaching 46 years in Texas high schools, about Pittman.
"If you said an O-line coach got a head job, he's exactly what you would think," Drones said. "He's just down-to-earth. Just a ball coach. He's going to call it like he sees it. He's going to give it to you just like it is."
Email Richard Davenport at [email protected]
Sports on 02/09/2020