The Recruiting Guy

LB Pool encouraged by what he saw on defense

Arkansas linebacker commit Bumper Pool.

In a few months, Arkansas Razorbacks linebacker commitment Bumper Pool will be in Fayetteville on a full-time basis, but this past weekend he officially visited the Hogs for the TCU game.

Pool, 6-2, 216, 4.79 seconds in the 40yard dash, of Lucas (Texas) Lovejoy is expected to graduate in December and enroll at the University of Arkansas, Fayetteville in January.

"It was wonderful," Pool said. "It was a great time. From the start it was amazing. Everything was better than I expected."

He hung out with several Razorbacks, including redshirt freshman linebacker Grant Morgan and redshirt sophomore tight end Grayson Gunter.

"It's so cool because we're all kind of like the same," Pool said. "They have great personalities so it's easy to mesh well with them, and I'm excited to get back up here."

When Pool officially enrolls, he'll join a long list of family members that attended Arkansas. His father, Jeff Pool, graduated from the UA in 1990 while two aunts, two cousins and a grandfather also graduated from the school. His sister, Maddie, will be a junior at Arkansas in the fall.

The Hogs lost to TCU 28-7 on Saturday, but Pool was encouraged by the performance of the defense.

"I thought the defense played really well," he said. "I think they got tired towards the end because they were on the field so much, which is expected. They were running around making plays. They had no explosive plays."

Pool chose the Hogs over scholarship offers from schools such as Alabama, Southern Cal, LSU and Michigan. He recorded 73 unassisted tackles, 40 assisted tackles, 6 tackles for loss, 2 pass deflections, an interception, a recovered fumble and forced a fumble as a junior.

In two games this season, Pool has 15 unassisted tackles, 11 assisted tackles and 3 tackles for loss. National recruiting analyst Tom Lemming of CBS Sports Network rates Pool as a four-star prospect.

"Bumper is a physical linebacker who can run," Lemming said. "He reads well, takes few missteps, fills the holes hard and plays the game like it should be with intensity, aggressiveness and speed. Bumper excels when in pursuit and is a player that plays with a high motor."

An official visit can last up to 48 hours and all the expenses are paid. Pool enjoyed being treated like a king for the weekend.

"It's amazing," Pool said. "Every place we went to we sat and didn't have to wait. The food was coming out quick. I got too much steak this weekend. I put on 5 pounds probably, but it was good."

Pool and quarterback commitment Connor Noland of Greenwood were the first two to commit to the Hogs for the 2018 class and have been active in recruiting others. The Razorback hosted about 45 prospects Saturday, and highly regarded Pulaski Academy junior tight end Hudson Henry was one of them.

"I met two or three of the guys this weekend," Pool said. "I was talking to [Hudson] Henry, and it looks like he is leaning this way. We will see what happens."

Basketball visits

Arkansas basketball Coach Mike Anderson, associate head coach Melvin Watkins and assistant coach Scotty Thurman made an in-home Monday night to guard Jordan Phillips, who officially will visit the Hogs this weekend.

Phillips, 6-7, 210 pounds, of Arlington (Texas) Grace Preparatory Academy averaged 23 points, 5.8 rebounds, 7 assists and 3 steals a game during the summer while playing for Dallas Showtyme.

He has scholarship offers from TCU, Fresno State, Virginia Tech, Georgetown and others. He's expected to receive an offer from Anderson soon.

The Hogs also will host power forward Reggie Chaney, 6-8, 230 pounds, of Findlay Prep in Nevada for an official visit. He has scholarship offers from Arkansas, Texas, Oklahoma State, DePaul, TCU, Wichita State and others.

Thurman attended a college combine at the school to watch Chaney.

Email Richard Davenport at rdavenport@arkansasonline.com

Sports on 09/12/2017