Arkansas has extended an offer to Shiloh Christian linebacker Kaden Henley.
“I’m extremely excited, definitely is awesome,” he said of the offer.
Henley, 6-2, 225 pounds, had offers from Liberty, New Mexico, Air Force, Army, Middle Tennessee State and others.
UA coach Sam Pittman, defensive coordinator Barry Odom and linebackers coach Michael Scherer told Henley of the offer over the phone.
“I talked to them before, but I wasn’t expecting it at all. It was definitely exciting,” Henley said. “They said they were extremely excited and they wanted me to play college football for them, and I was really happy about it.”
Henley recorded 159 tackles, 4 sacks, 26 tackles for loss, 6 quarterback hurries, 4 interceptions, 2 pass breakups, 2 recovered fumbles, 2 forced fumbles and 2 blocked punts while helping Shiloh Christian win the Class 4A state title.
Henley recently set a new school record in the power clean with a lift of 335 pounds. He has also squatted 515.
Henley said he was tempted to commit, but he wants to wait before making a decision.
“It was definitely a little bit, but I want to go see those guys eye-to-eye and shake their hand,” he said.
Saints coach Jeff Conaway is an admirer of Henley and said he wouldn’t hesitate to let him date one of his two daughters.
“If they brought him home and wanted me to meet him and they wanted to date, he would be the kind of guy I would say yes to,” Conaway said. “I’m pretty picky. He’s just a great kid. He loves the Lord.”
Henley hasn't recorded a recent 40 yard dash time.
"We really don't test the 40 yard dash but we did 10 meters the other day and I hit 21 miles per hour," he said.
Henley is the 10th in-state prospect in the 2022 class to earn an offer from Arkansas.