LITTLE ROCK — Baylor commitment and athlete Davion Hall of Texarkana (Texas) Liberty-Eylau arrived in Fayetteville on Thursday night and is expected to visit the Hogs today and Saturday.
Hall, 6-3, 192 pounds, 4.5 seconds in the 40-yard dash, said his close friend Jarrion Lawson encouraged him to visit Arkansas. Lawson attended Liberty-Eylau last year and is a member of the Arkansas’ track and field team.
“He told me to come visit because more than likely I’m going to like it,” Hall said.
Hall had 26 carries for 336 yards, with a long run of 74 yards, and 12 receptions for 315 yards while seeing time at quarterback, running back and receiver. He also played safety but said he wants to play receiver in college.
“I know how to use my hands and I like to go after the ball,” Hall said.
Hall, who is being recruited by Arkansas tight ends coach Barry Lunney Jr., has a 3.4 grade-point average and is puts education at the forefront of his recruitment.
“I really look at the academic program first because I want a degree,” said Hall, who also plays power forward in basketball and runs relays in track. “I like messing with computers, so something like that.”
Hall has scholarship offers from approximately 10 schools, including Arkansas, LSU, Missouri, SMU, Baylor, Texas A&M, Texas Tech and Oklahoma. He plans to visit LSU and a couple of others.
In addition to being fond of computers, Hall also likes speedy cars.
“A friend and I are trying to put together a dirt track car,” Hall said. “My papa dirt track raced and my friend dirt track raced with him and we’re thinking about putting something together. We’re actually looking for a frame right now.”
MOSS ALL SMILES OVER UA
Steven Moss of Fredericksburg (Va.) Chancellor is one of the more highly recruited offensive linemen in the nation with 21 scholarship offers and has a good amount of interest in Arkansas because of the recruiting effort and sense of humor of offensive line coach Sam Pittman.
Moss, 6-5, 290 pounds, 5.0 seconds in the 40-yard dash, has offers from schools such as Arkansas, Tennessee, Auburn, South Carolina, Virginia and Penn State. He said he talks to Pittman on Facebook on a regular basis and over the phone once or twice a week.
“He’s definitely a funny guy,” said Moss, who has a 3.6 grade-point average. “He keeps me laughing. He’s definitely a really good guy. He’s straightforward with you. He pretty much told me you’re on my ‘got to have’ list. He told me once I get down there he knows he already has me won.”
Moss, who also said he is in communication with offensive line graduate assistant Eric Mateos, possess excellent strength with a 365-pound bench press and 550-pound squat. He hopes to visit all four of the SEC schools that have offered him scholarships.
“That’s pretty much where all the big games are and it’s pretty much where all the NFL players play,” Moss said.
QB RECEIVES OFFER
Quarterback Brandon Harris of Bossier City (La.) Parkway said he received a scholarship offer from Arkansas on Tuesday.
Harris, 6-3 ½ , 187 pounds, 4.55 seconds in the 40-yard dash, now has scholarship offers from seven schools, including Arizona State and Louisiana Tech. He passed for 2,573 yards and 26 touchdown passes with 7 interceptions as a junior while also running for 667 yards.
“Arkansas is a big-time program ,” Harris said. “I was able to visit up there when I was a freshman and attended a camp there.”
Harris said he talked to offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach Jim Chaney and receivers coach Michael Smith about the offer.
“I’ve always been a fan of what those guys like to do offensively,” Harris said. “I know with Coach [Bret] Bielema, Russell Wilson was able to do some things with the Wisconsin offense.”
Harris has a 3.8 grade point average and is considering sports management as a major. He plans to graduate in December and enroll in college in January.
“I’m not trying to rush the process at all, but I’ll probably commit during the summer,” he said.
SAFETY PLANS VISIT
Safety Brandon Simmons plans to visit Arkansas for a spring practice, according to his father Kashann Simmons.
Brandon Simmons, 6-0, 180 pounds, 4.5 seconds in the 40-yard dash, has scholarship offers from 41 schools, including Arkansas, Ohio State, Oklahoma, LSU and Michigan.
Simmons said Sunday that he hoped to make a visit during the spring to watch the Arkansas coaches interact with the players. Cornerbacks coach Taver Johnson is his lead recruiter.
E-mail Richard Davenport at rdavenport@arkansasonline.com
Sports, Pages 23 on 03/08/2013