re: Arkansas Football 2024 Recruiting Thread **WR Zachary Taylor Commits**

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Recruiting Update

4-stars by site
1. DL Charleston Collins - On3 Industry, On3, 247 Composite, 247, Rivals, ESPN
2. WR Ashton Bethel-Roman - On3 Industry, On3, 247 Composite, 247, Rivals, ESPN
3. CB Selman Bridges - On3 Industry, 247 Composite, 247, Rivals, ESPN
4. RB Braylen Russell - On3 Industry, 247 Composite, 247, Rivals, ESPN
5. EDGE Kavion Henderson - On3 Industry, 247 Composite, Rivals, ESPN
6. QB KJ Jackson - 247 Composite, 247, Rivals
7. NB Julius Pope - 247 Composite, Rivals

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4-star transfers by site
1. OL Fernando Carmona - On3, Rivals
2. LB Xavian Sorey - 247

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Individual Rankings by site: On3, 247, Rivals and ESPN

Signees (24)

EDGE Kavion Henderson
- 88 grade 3-star on On3; 90 grade 4-star on On3 Industry
- 89 grade 3-star on 247; 91 grade 4-star on 247 Composite
- 5.9 grade 4-star on Rivals
- 83 grade 4-star on ESPN

NB Julius Pope
- 89 grade 3-star on On3; 88 grade 3-star on On3 Industry
- 88 grade 3-star on 247; 89 grade 4-star on 247 Composite
- 5.8 grade 4-star on Rivals
- 79 grade 3-star on ESPN

QB KJ Jackson
- 88 grade 3-star on On3; 89 grade 3-star on On3 Industry
- 90 grade 4-star on 247; 89 grade 4-star on 247 Composite
- 5.8 grade 4-star on Rivals
- 78 grade 3-star on ESPN

CB Jaden Allen
- 87 grade 3-star on On3; 87 grade 3-star on On3 Industry
- 86 grade 3-star on 247; 87 grade 3-star on 247 Composite
- 5.7 grade 3-star on Rivals
- 78 grade 3-star on ESPN

DL Charleston Collins
- 94 grade 4-star on On3; 94 grade 4-star on On3 Industry
- 93 grade 4-star on 247; 95 grade 4-star on 247 Composite
- 5.9 grade 4-star on Rivals
- 82 grade 4-star on ESPN

CB Tevis Metcalf
- 85 grade 3-star on On3; 87 grade 3-star on On3 Industry
- 88 grade 3-star on 247; 87 grade 3-star on 247 Composite
- 5.7 grade 3-star on Rivals
- 78 grade 3-star on ESPN

NB Ahkhari Johnson
- 88 grade 3-star on On3; 87 grade 3-star on On3 Industry
- 87 grade 3-star on 247; 87 grade 3-star on 247 Composite
- 5.7 grade 3-star on Rivals
- 76 grade 3-star on ESPN

WR CJ Brown
- 88 grade 3-star on On3; 87 grade 3-star on On3 Industry
- 88 grade 3-star on 247; 87 grade 3-star on 247 Composite
- 5.6 grade 3-star on Rivals
- 78 grade 3-star on ESPN

OL Kobe Branham
- 85 grade 3-star on On3; 85 grade 3-star on On3 Industry
- 86 grade 3-star on 247; 86 grade 3-star on 247 Composite
- 5.6 grade 3-star on Rivals
- 78 grade 3-star on ESPN

OL Zuri Madison
- 87 grade 3-star on On3; 87 grade 3-star on On3 Industry
- 88 grade 3-star on 247; 87 grade 3-star on 247 Composite
- 5.6 grade 3-star on Rivals
- 79 grade 3-star on ESPN

WR Ashton Bethel-Roman
- 90 grade 4-star on On3; 91 grade 4-star on On3 Industry
- 93 grade 4-star on 247; 92 grade 4-star on 247 Composite
- 5.8 grade 4-star on Rivals
- 82 grade 4-star on ESPN

RB Braylen Russell
- 88 grade 3-star on On3; 89 grade 4-star on On3 Industry
- 90 grade 4-star on 247; 90 grade 4-star on 247 Composite
- 5.8 grade 4-star on Rivals
- 81 grade 4-star on ESPN

CB Selman Bridges
- 89 grade 3-star on On3; 92 grade 4-star on On3 Industry
- 93 grade 4-star on 247; 94 grade 4-star on 247 Composite
- 5.9 grade 4-star on Rivals
- 85 grade 4-star on ESPN

LB Justin Logan
- 88 grade 3-star on On3; 88 grade 3-star on On3 Industry
- 89 grade 3-star on 247; 88 grade 3-star on 247 Composite
- 5.7 grade 3-star on Rivals
- 78 grade 3-star on ESPN

LB Wyatt Simmons
- 89 grade 3-star on On3; 88 grade 3-star on On3 Industry
- 88 grade 3-star on 247; 88 grade 3-star on 247 Composite
- 5.7 grade 3-star on Rivals
- 79 grade 3-star on ESPN

WR Krosse Johnson
- 85 grade 3-star on On3; 84 grade 3-star on On3 Industry
- 87 grade 3-star on 247; 86 grade 3-star on 247 Composite
- 5.4 grade 2-star on Rivals
- 77 grade 3-star on ESPN

TR OL Keyshawn Blackstock - MICHIGAN STATE
- 89 grade 3-star on On3
- 88 grade 3-star on 247
- 5.7 grade 3-star on Rivals

TR TE Andreas Paaske - EASTERN MICHIGAN
- 86 grade 3-star on On3
- 86 grade 3-star on 247
- 5.2 grade 2-star on Rivals

TR QB Taylen Green - BOISE STATE
- 89 grade 3-star on On3
- 87 grade 3-star on 247
- 5.6 grade 3-star on Rivals

TR DB Doneiko Slaughter - TENNESSEE
- 86 grade 3-star on On3
- 87 grade 3-star on 247
- 5.5 grade 3-star on Rivals

TR OT Fernando Carmona Jr. - SAN JOSE STATE
- 90 grade 4-star on On3
- 88 grade 3-star on 247
- 5.8 grade 4-star on Rivals

TR K Matthew Shipley - HAWAII
- 80 grade 3-star on On3
- N/A grade 3-star on 247
- 5.2 grade 2-star on Rivals

TR OL Addison Nichols - TENNESSEE
- 88 grade 3-star on On3
- 89 grade 3-star on 247
- 5.7 grade 3-star on Rivals

TR LB Xavian Sorey Jr. - GEORGIA
- 88 grade 3-star on On3
- 90 grade 4-star on 247
- 5.7 grade 3-star on Rivals

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Commits (1)

S Jeremy Cook
- 85 grade 3-star on On3; 84 grade 3-star on On3 Industry
- 85 grade 3-star on 247; 84 grade 3-star on 247 Composite
- 5.5 grade 3-star on Rivals
- 75 grade 3-star on ESPN

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So far, all but one of Arkansas’ commits are now signees who will be on campus in the coming months to play for the Razorbacks.

The fun started around 7 a.m. Wednesday morning. Three-star offensive lineman Zuri Madison was the first commit to send in his letter of intent, and the rest started coming in quickly.

Perhaps the most nerve-racking of those letters of intent was from four-star wide receiver Ashton Bethel-Roman. He took an official visit to Texas A&M over the weekend and waited until right around 2 p.m. — when Arkansas head coach Sam Pittman met with the media — before it was announced that he signed.

One recruit’s letter of intent is still outstanding. Three-star cornerback Jeremy Cook will not be signing with the Razorbacks in the early period, HawgBeat learned.

During Pittman’s press conference, he discussed several of Arkansas’ 17 commitments. Here’s some notes and quotes from the first day of the Early Signing Period.

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KJ Jackson

"When (Bobby Petrino) saw KJ Jackson, he said 'Man this guy is athletic,'" Pittman said. "He’s smooth. He’s got a quick release. He’s very accurate. And I said 'Well if you like the tape, you’re going to love the kid.' We went on a home visit and what a wonderful family. He’s 6-5. I mean, he’s a big man that can run and has a very, very strong arm."

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Charleston Collins

“We didn’t sign anybody that didn’t have several offers from the state of Arkansas everywhere else,” Pittman said. “With Charlie, he probably was as top of that, Wyatt Simmons had a tremendous amount. Braylen. All these guys. And for him to stay here just proves that they’re going to be damn good Hogs because they wanted to be here. With Charlie staying with us, that was special.”

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Ashton Bethel-Roman

"Speed, speed," Pittman said. "Great kid, great family, but I think he ran a 21.3 or something like that in the 200 meters, something close to that. Obviously, we all know we like speed, Bobby loves speed. So we went out and got him."

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Kobe Branham

"Kobe Branham," Pittman said. "Kobe Branham, I love him now. I love big, athletic guys. I love his family. I tell you what, I think he’s going to be really special. I think (Fort Smith Southside head coach) Kim Dameron and that group over there did a really good job with him."

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CJ Brown

"CJ Brown, obviously he’s local," Pittman said. "He did a little bit of everything for his team. He’s a great athlete. Faster than what I thought at first even, but he catches everything. The one thing is he’s tough. He comes from an athletic family. Both his sisters are athletic. Daddy was. They can’t say enough about him at the school, the type of person that he is. Of course, obviously they got beat in the state championship, but at one point they lost three in a row. It was great coaching, but it also was leadership and I think it was a lot of what CJ did on the team. So those are the guys and we’re really, really happy we got them all."

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Braylen Russell

"Bobby and I were sitting there watching his tape, and we think he can play right now," Pittman said. "He's got the size, the physicality. He loves the state of Arkansas, the university, great parents. But I'll tell you, he's got the size and the physicality. He's really, really improved, in my opinion, over the last year. Didn't have to have -- his statistics may not be world-beaters because they didn't have to use him -- they had a really good ball club. But I think he has a chance to play for us this year."

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Krosse Johnson

"Obviously, nobody knew about Krosse Johnson," Pittman said. "I didn't either until about three or four days ago when we felt like we may lose a receiver. We needed another high school receiver, we needed speed. Krosse is running 10.5 and he runs it on the field. So, we were able to add there."

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Ahkhari Johnson

Johnson projects as a defensive back for the Razorbacks, but he played both quarterback and cornerback for Pleasant Grove last season.

The Texarkana, Texas, native could be one of the more underrated additions in the class just based on his athletic ability.

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Wyatt Simmons

"Well, Wyatt, let’s start with him," Pittman said. "Very, very, very, very, very aggressive ... But Wyatt comes from, obviously, a father (who has a) background in coaching. Very, very physical. Can run. Played a little bit of everything — played tight end, played running back. But he’s a linebacker. He’s a Mike linebacker, to me. He can play Willy, too, but he’s a guy who can go sic ‘em, go after the football."

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Juju Pope

"He's really an athlete," Pittman said. "Here's what happened with Juju. We watched his tape, and we were doing the same thing. We're going, 'where are we going to play this kid? We going to play him at Hog? We going to play him at linebacker? We going to play him at running back?' So, what I said was 'Look, if we can sign 20 guys better than him, I don't think we can.' So, I said let's take him, and then we'll figure out where to play him when he gets here. On our depth chart right now, he's a Hog."

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Tevis Metcalf

Tevis is the younger brother of current Arkansas defensive back TJ Metcalf. He helped lead his Clay-Chalkville squad to an Alabama State Championship this past season.

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Kavion Henderson

"He came from Alabama, and he had both state schools offer him and wanted him," Pittman said. "He stayed with us. I think it has something to do with his grandma. I think it has something to do with him and his coach and Deke Adams. All of those guys did a great job, but none of those other people would have a hold to stay loyal to us, especially the way our season went if he didn't want to. Just a wonderful kid, really good player, great person. We're just really pleased, happy and honored that he stayed with us."

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Justin Logan

"Logan was a guy who wasn’t quite as highly recruited as those guys, but we really liked his size," Pittman said. "T-Will kind of when after him. That was his guy that he goes (after), he knew a little about him and things of that nature character-wise. Great kid."

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Jaden Allen

A three-star athlete out of Aledo, Texas, Allen was actually committed to Texas for over a year, the same school his brother BJ was at (BJ just last week announced his transfer to North Texas).

Allen didn’t stuff the stat sheets while helping Aledo to a Texas Class 5A State Championship in 2023, simply because teams didn’t really throw his way. He’s got great cover skills and does a good job not allowing a lot of space from his receivers.

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Selman Bridges

One of the taller defensive backs in the country, Bridges possesses a 6-foot-4, 170-pound frame that goes well with his speed. It’s difficult for wide receivers to get separation from him simply due to his length, and he could be a real factor for the Razorbacks as early as next season.

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Zuri Madison

The first of the class to send in his letter of intent, Madison helped his Frederick Douglass High School team to an 8-5 record. He chose the Hogs over offers from Miami (FL), Kentucky and others.

Madison is 6-foot-5 and 303 pounds, and his frame gives him the versatility to play either on the outside at tackle or inside at guard.

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While everyone’s eyes are on the transfer portal, Arkansas picked up a massive commitment from the high school ranks as 2024 linebacker Bradley Shaw committed to the Hogs on Christmas Day.

The Hoover, Alabama, native has had a quiet recruitment, and the Hogs won out. He posted the announcement on his X (formerly Twitter) account.

The Arkansas coaches offered Shaw on Sept. 14, 2022 and he took his official visit to Fayetteville on the weekend of June 19.

He made another stop at Arkansas the weekend the Hogs squared off against BYU with his teammate and now fellow commit, three-star cornerback Jeremy “JuJu” Cook.

Shaw chose Arkansas over a late push from Clemson, Notre Dame, Auburn, Alabama and others.

It’s worth noting Shaw is set to play in the NBC All-American Bowl in San Antonio, Texas, on Jan. 6, 2024.

He’ll be there with three fellow Arkansas commits: four-star cornerback Selman Bridges, four-star defensive end Charleston Collins and Cabot punter Sam Dubwig.

With Shaw’s commitment, Arkansas is likely done in the high school ranks at linebacker, as the Hogs have three in the class in three-stars Wyatt Simmons and Justin Logan in addition to Shaw.

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Hoover (Ala.) High Top247 linebacker Bradley Shaw announced his commitment to Arkansas on Christmas Day. He had already put pen to paper for the Razorbacks during the three-day Early Signing Period that began on Dec. 20.

“It’s at home,” Shaw told 247Sports. Defensive coordinator Travis Williams led the charge in recruiting the blue-chipper.

“The coaches they’ve been trying to get me since day one, make me feel at home since day one, make my family feel at home since day one. They’re showing lots of love.”

247Sports tabs the 6-foot-1, 216-pound Shaw as the nation’s No. 8 linebacker and No. 101 prospect overall. He took his official to Arkansas back in the summer and also held offers from the likes of Auburn, Alabama, Clemson and Notre Dame.

“The players,” Shaw said of what caught his eye regarding the culture. “When I had my OV I talked to the players. I asked them questions I need to be asking. They told me what it was. The group of guys coming in they’ve been recruiting me hard. I had a lot of people talking in my ear and helping with the process.”

Shaw becomes commit No. 18 for head coach Sam Pittman in the 2024 cycle and he looks forward to playing for him and Williams.

“What they’re all about,” Shaw said. “They’re great guys. I want to play for somebody that’s going to make me a better man on and off the field. Both were very genuine.”

Shaw looks forward to helping Arkansas quickly bounce back on the field.

“Up for sure,” he said of the trajectory. “This recruiting class coming in it’s going to help boost it. I think our class moving forward will be prepared to make a difference fast. Get in the playbook early and help those older guys out.”

247Sports National Analyst Cooper Petagna breaks down Shaw as a prospect.

"Estimated at 6-foot-1 and 215-pounds, possesses an athletic frame with growth potential to add additional weight to his build. Displays good athleticism at the linebacker position and is also a multi-sport athlete that participates in the shot put and discus.

"Demonstrates a high level of football intelligence and instincts at the second level, showing the ability to key and diagnose offensive schemes quickly. Exhibits good play speed both downhill and sideline to sideline while comfortable in space and pass coverage. Productive knock back tackler between the tackles that shows the ability to unlock and explode at the point of attack. Plays fast but under control and with very little wasted motion in both the run and pass.

"Has a knack for being around the football and sniffing out opposing plays before they develop. A true three down linebacker, Shaw is more of a traditional inside backer with excellent feel and instincts in the tackle box. Projects as a multi-year Power Five starter at the next level with the ability to contribute immediately on defense and special teams. One of the “headiest” defenders in the cycle regardless of position, the Hoover standout possesses an ascending ceiling with an extremely high floor due to his outstanding football acumen and second level playmaking ability."

Shaw will play in the All-American Bowl on Jan. 6, broadcasted live nationally on NBC. Kickoff is set for 1pm (EST).

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Hoover (Ala.) four-star linebacker Bradley Shaw has committed to Arkansas.

The 6-foot, 220-pounder chose the Razorbacks over Clemson. He also held offers from the likes of Alabama, Auburn, Georgia and Notre Dame.

Shaw is the No. 220 overall prospect and No. 17 LB in the 2024 cycle, according to the On3 Industry Ranking, a weighted average that utilizes all four major recruiting media companies. He’s also the No. 14 player in Alabama.

“This one had a couple of late twists. The communication with a little better with Clemson for Bradley Shaw according to a source, so the Tigers were viewed as the favorite. Then they landed linebacker CJ Kubah-Taylor and that shifted things toward Arkansas,” On3’s Chad Simmons wrote ahead of Early National Signing Day.

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