LITTLE ROCK — Colorado offensive lineman Alex Kozan has visited numerous college campus over the past few months, and Arkansas is next on his list.
Kozan, 6-4, 295 pounds, 5.2 seconds in the 40-yard dash,will make an unofficial visit to Fayetteville on Tuesday.
Kozan said Arkansas, LSU, Oregon, Oklahoma State, Arizona State, Arizona, Colorado and Syracuse are among the 21 schools that have offered him a scholarship.
“A lot of these schools you’ve never seen before so it’s just a logo,” said Kozan, of Castle Rock Valor Christian. “It will be good to get a place in your head and see everything and meet all of the people, just get a better feel for the University of Arkansas.”
Of particular interest to Kozan is the Sam M. Walton College of Business.
“Everyone says their program has a top 25 business school, but Arkansas really does have a top business school,” Kozan said. “That’s one of the things I like so much about them.”
How Arkansas utilizes offensive linemen in its prostyle offense intrigues Kozan, along with the stability of the coaching staff.
“Coach Petrino probably isn’t going anywhere,” Kozan said. “The coaches seem like people that are going to stick around and you don’t have to worry about if they’ll be here for four years.”
Kozan has taken unofficial visits to Utah, Colorado, Arizona, Arizona State, Stanford,California, Wisconsin, Illinois, Iowa and Nebraska.
“I’m blessed to have a family that’s able to support me in doing that,” Kozan said. “It’s important to see the places and meet the people and really see if it’s a good fit for you.”
Kozan described his lead recruiter, offensive line coach Chris Klenakis, as a “great recruiter, a very energetic guy.”
“He also seems humble, which I like about him,” Kozan said. “The No. 1 thing I see about him as a coach is he gets down to business when it’s time. You have your fun off the field, but on the field he’s all business.”
After visiting Arkansas, Kozan said he plans to travel to Oklahoma State and LSUafter visiting Arkansas.
“I think once I get done with these visits, I’ll start to narrow it down to a top 5, 6 or 7 by about the end of July,” Kozan said.
EAGER TO COMPETE
Cornerback Will Hines of Waco, Texas is one of several top recruits expected to attend Arkansas junior/senior prospect camp July 16.
Arkansas, Oklahoma State, Notre Dame, Texas Tech, Baylor and Michigan are among 12 schools who have offered a scholarship to Hines, 6-1, 180 pounds, 4.47 seconds in the 40-yard dash. Hines said that getting to compete against Arkansas’ highly regarded receivers during practice is one aspect that interests him.
“I like that they’re in the SEC and they had a successful season last year,” Hines said. “They’re a top program. I like that they’re close and not too far away.”
Hines also had good things to say about his lead recruiter, defensive tackles coach Bobby Allen.
“He’s an exciting guy,” Hines said. “He has a lot of energy. He’s a real cool guyto talk to. I feel comfortable talking to him.”
Hines said he’s also planning to visit Texas A&M, Missouri and LSU during July.
The challenge of competing in the SEC is enticing.
“Most of the top-ranked schools are in the SEC,” said Hines, who reports a 36-inch vertical jump. “I could go against some really good teams and they would make me better as a player.
Hines said he plans to make his college decision at the end of July or early August.
HOGS ON THE RADAR
National recruiting analyst Tom Lemming of CBS College Sports travels across the country for about five months, starting in December, checking in on 2,000 junior and sophomore prospects.
Now home in Chicago, Lemming is calling about 1,200 of the top recruits for his magazine, Tom Lemming’s Prep Football Report, which will be out in August.
“I noticed throughout the South, the Carolinas, Texas, the one school that popped up more than any other school in the SEC was Arkansas,” Lemming said. “That’s saying something, because that’s never been the case.
“I’ve been doing this for 32 years, and never has Arkansas been the top school in either the Southwest Conference or the Southeast.”
Lemming said Arkansas’ organization is the best it’s been in the past 14 years.
“They’re going to lose the majority of these players like everyone does,” Lemming said. “The more top players you’re in on, the more likely you are to land a good group.”
E-mail Richard Davenport at
Sports, Pages 31 on 06/26/2011