FAYETTEVILLE — One of the better prospects in the St. Louis area, offensive lineman Marquise Simmons made his way to Fayetteville on Saturday to visit Arkansas, and he’s glad he did.
“It was a wonderful experience,” Simmons said. “They have really nice facilities. The coaches really seem to enjoy being around people here. They seem to have high hopes for everybody here, and these are the people they see turning around their program.”
Simmons, 6-4, 320 pounds, of St. Louis De Smet Jesuit High School, has scholarship offers from Iowa State and Texas State while drawing interest from Arkansas and others.
The tour of the facilities was his favorite part of the visit.
“They showed us all of their facilities in the weight room and the training room and how much money they put in to them and how much time the players actually spend in the facilities,” Simmons said.
Simmons, who made Metro Catholic all-conference in the St. Louis area this past season, visited the Razorbacks with teammate and highly regarded sophomore receiver Jordan Johnson. He said an offer from the Hogs would put them high on his list.
“That would most likely put them at the top of the list from what I’ve seen today,” Simmons said. “The coaches and the staff like to engage with the people here.”