RECRUITING GUY

THE RECRUITING GUY: Florida receiver places Razorbacks in his top 6

Hill
Hill

ESPN 4-star receiver prospect Tommi Hill said he included the University of Arkansas in his top six last week because of the Razorbacks' coaching staff.

Coach Sam Pittman, receivers coach Justin Stepp and assistant head coach/special-teams coordinator Scott Fountain head up Hill's recruitment.

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"All the coaching staff is showing good love," Hill said. "Extremely good love. I appreciate that."

Hill, 6-1, 185 pounds, of Orlando (Fla.) Edgewater also named Mississippi State, Nebraska, Arizona State, Oklahoma and Penn State as finalists. Most schools are recruiting him with assistant coaches, but he said he talks with Pittman often.

"Some times I'll talk to the head coach, but not as much as Arkansas," Hill said. "That's a big opportunity. That's why they're in my top six."

Arkansas' "extremely good love" comes daily, he said.

"They check up on me every day, see if I'm good and how's my day and check up on my family," Hill said. "They like to talk to me not just about sports, but about how life is going."

ESPN rates Hill as the No. 38 receiver and No. 196 overall recruit for the 2021 class.

He said he appreciates that the Razorback coaches talk about things other than football.

"That means a lot," he said. "That's like a real family organization. I appreciate that."

Hill, who has 25 scholarship offers, hasn't visited any of his finalists because of the coronavirus and the NCAA dead period that started March 13.

"I'm going to keep taking virtual visits," Hill said. "I'm going to try and commit by August. If it opens up before that, I'm going to try and take one of my trips."

He did a virtual tour with Arkansas about two weeks ago.

"I loved it," Hill said. "I talked to the academic people. They're involved with the students. They check in, and if they need help, they get them help right away. The facility and the locker rooms were amazing, and I like how the field was."

He drove about three hours and 30 minutes from Orlando to Miami to meet with CBS Sports Network national recruiting analyst Tom Lemming, who was in the city to meet with about 100 area prospects in January.

"He's one of the top three players in central Florida," Lemming said. "He has strong hands, good speed, good all-around receiver. He's a 4-star prospect."

Hill, who received his first scholarship offer from Kansas after his eighth-grade year, has a 3.5 grade-point average and wants to major in communications so he can go into broadcasting.

"I just like to talk about sports," Hill said. "If you talk about sports, I'm going to match you."

Email Richard Davenport at rdavenport@arkansasonline.com

Sports on 05/24/2020

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