Arkansas offensive tackle target Dalton Wagner made public his commitment to the Razorbacks on Friday.
He and his family visited Arkansas on Thursday and Coach Bret Bielema and offensive line coach Kurt Anderson he wanted to be a Razorback.
Wagner, 6-9, 312 pounds, of Richmond-Burton High School in Richmond, Ill., picked Arkansas over scholarship offers from Missouri, California, Virginia, Purdue, Louisville, Illinois, Vanderbilt, Indiana and others.
He and his father Brad had visited the Arkansas in March.
"It just reaffirmed what I thought when I first visited and it's just a really, really special place," Wagner said. "I'm excited to see what my future will hold there and excited to get my butt going. That's what I'm really looking forward to."
His mother Nancy came away impressed.
"She loved it, she absolutely loved it," Wagner said. " She loves every part of the entire program They started us off in the equipment room and they let my little brother try on a jersey and a helmet too. He was all excited about that."
A priority was to see the Jerry and Gene Jones Academic Center.
"That was one of the bigger things mom wanted to see, too," Wagner said. "It showed this is a school that really, really cares about your academics and shows Coach Bielema attacks the academics. It's him making sure you make good grades and making sure of that. He doesn't have to be doing that. He doesn't have to have weekly meetings with the academic advisors, but he does.
"He doesn't just care about the four years you're there, he cares about your whole life and cares about what you do beyond."
Spending time with Anderson, an Illinois native, also reaffirmed his decision.
"He once again explained his philosophy about his coaching," Wagner said. "He's not going to be the guy that beats you down. His words were he's going to give you the grace to fail so you can learn from it and you can be better. That's one of the things that draws me."
Wagner also respects Anderson being family-oriented.
"He's a down-home family man," Wagner said. "He really cares about us. He has his values there and I'm looking forward to being coached by him and the rest of the staff."
He becomes Arkansas' third offensive line commitment and No. 19 overall for the 2017 class. The Razorbacks are expected to sign four to five offensive linemen for the class.
Sports on 07/30/2016