FAYETTEVILLE -- University of Arkansas receiver and kick returner Isaiah Sategna has decided not to compete in track and field, Razorbacks Coach Chris Bucknam said Friday.
But the track and field team still will have a football player, Bucknam said, with Texas A&M transfer receiver Jordan Anthony set to do both sports at Arkansas.
Sategna, who starred at Fayetteville High School in football and track and field, had planned to compete in both sports when he signed with Arkansas, but he'll now focus on football.
As a senior at Fayetteville High School in the spring of 2022, Sategna won the long jump at the Class 6A state meet with a state-record leap of 24 feet, 8 inches. He also won the 110-meter hurdles, the 330-meter hurdles and tied for first in the 100 meters.
"It's all good," Bucknam said of Sategna's decision not to compete in track and field. "We're just glad Isaiah is a Razorback and he's thriving with the football team."
Sategna, who will be a redshirt sophomore in football this fall, had 15 catches for 129 yards and 2 touchdowns last season and returned a punt 88 yards for a touchdown against BYU. He averaged 21.7 yards on 23 kickoff returns and 12.0 yards on15 punt returns. He redshirted last year's track and field season.
"He's doing a great job for the football team and we're proud of him," Bucknam said. "He's always welcome back if he wants to compete in track and field again. The door is always open."
Anthony was on the football and track and field teams as a freshman at Kentucky during the 2022-23 school year before transferring to Texas A&M. He played in three games for the Aggies last season and caught three passes for 14 yards.
As a freshman at Kentucky during last year's track and field season, Anthony was an All-American sprinter who finished second in the 60 meters at the NCAA Indoor Championships, where he ran 6.57 seconds. In the outdoor season he ran 10.16 in the 100 meters to set Kentucky's freshman record.
"Jordan's an exciting addition for us," Bucknam said. "He's an outstanding sprinter. He proved that. We saw him last year in Kentucky where not only did he score high in the SEC meet, but he turned around in the NCAA meet and got second place.
"So in a sport that maturity really counts -- physical maturity, emotional maturity -- for a freshman to get second place and make a run at a national title is pretty impressive."
Anthony didn't run in theseason-opening Arkansas Invitational on Friday night, but Bucknam said the plan is for him to compete in meets later this spring.
"Although he told me if the NCAA meet was this weekend, he's ready to run," Bucknam said. "You love that competitiveness.
"Jordan is certainly going to be a fun, great addition to our program and we look for him to run indoor and outdoor track along with doing his football duties."
Bucknam credited new Arkansas offensive coordinator Bobby Petrino, who had the same position at Texas A&M last season, for being open to Anthony also running for the track and field team.
When Petrino was Arkansas' head coach from 2008-11, receiver Cobi Hamilton was among the football players who competed for the track and field team.
"I've got a great relationship with Coach Petrino," Bucknam said. "He reached out to me when Jordan was going to be coming from Texas A&M and said, 'Hey, would you like to have this guy compete for you?' And obviously we said, 'Yes.'
"Hopefully it works out well."