Petrino-Coached Receiver and Star QB Are Among the Top 10 Razorbacks Transfer Prospects
Four days before the Hogs’ season finale against Missouri, Sam Pittman and his Arkansas football team secured a major need when former Michigan State offensive lineman Keyshawn Blackstock committed out of the transfer portal.
Although Pittman had a fantastic start, he still has a lot of work ahead of him after a terrible four-win season. In a recent Sam Pittman Live episode, he called attention to the offensive line’s need for assistance as well as the quarterback position and a few defensive spots.
While college coaches have been traveling the nation to watch their commits and top prospects compete for high school state championships, the Pittman era has not diminished the importance of high-caliber output coming out of the portal that can offer prompt assistance.
Best of Arkansas Sports has compiled an early watch list of prospects as the transfer portal window opens on Monday. Keep checking back as portal season heats up and more names start to come in every day.
R-JR | Taylen Green | QB | 6-6, 225
Bobby Petrino, the offensive coordinator for Arkansas, made Green an offer after he graduated from Lewisville (Texas) High School. At the time, Petrino was the head coach at Missouri State. He chose to sign with Boise State, and during his rookie season, he played in just one game. However, in 2022, he made a big impression by starting ten games for the Broncos and winning the Mountain West Freshman of the Year award. In addition, College Football News named Green a second team Freshman All-American after he amassed 2,628 yards (2,042 passing) with 24 touchdowns overall and 61% of his passes completed.
Although Green’s numbers declined in 2023—he completed 57% of his passes for 1,752 yards and 11 touchdowns with nine interceptions in addition to 436 yards and nine touchdowns on the ground—it is noteworthy that Green might make a return to Boise State. Before the Nov. 11 game versus New Mexico, backup Maddux Madsen replaced him as the starting quarterback. But as of late, the pendulum has swung the other way. After leading the Broncos to a 44-20 victory over Barry Odom’s UNLV team in the Mountain West Championship game, Green completed 12 of 15 passes for 226 yards and two touchdowns in addition to scoring 90 yards and two touchdowns on the ground. Green was named the Offensive Player of the Game.
Quarterback Will Rogers | 6-2, 215 | GR-TR
Rogers, who is regarded as one of the SEC’s most accomplished passers statistically, would be a huge asset to the quarterback room in Arkansas. Rogers has thrown for 12,315 yards and 94 touchdowns in his Mississippi State career. His best campaign occurred in 2021, when he completed 74% of his passes for 4,739 yards and 36 touchdowns.
Despite facing several challenges in 2023—including a shoulder injury that kept him out of action for eight games, including Mississippi State’s 7-3 victory over Arkansas—Rogers persevered and finished with 1,976 yards and 36 touchdowns.
Rogers would be a great choice if KJ Jefferson decides to step down and Jacolby Criswell isn’t considered the obvious successor.
UPDATE: It appears that Will Rogers might be traveling to Washington, D.C., to play.
R-JR Jerand Bradley | WR | 6-5, 220
Bradley, a wide receiver for Texas Tech who finished second in almost every receiving category and hauled in 36 receptions for 431 yards and four touchdowns, was a high school teammate of current Arkansas wide receiver Jaedon Wilson. Bradley played for the Red Raiders for three seasons, logging 1,274 yards and ten touchdowns on 92 receptions.
After graduating from high school, Bradley received offers from several universities, including South Carolina, Nebraska, Baylor, and former Hogs wide receivers coach Justin Stepp.
Cottrell, Raymond | WR | 6-3, 210 | SO
Cottrell, one of the top young names on the portal, is already good friends with Bobby Petrino, the new offensive coordinator for the Hogs. During his rookie year in College Station, he only had one pass for 13 yards, but it was for a touchdown.
The native of Milton, Florida, was a unanimous four-star prospect in the 2023 class and was rated as high as the 23rd-best wide receiver in the nation by ESPN, which also had him ranked 162nd overall. Among the many offers on his impressive list, which also included Notre Dame, Alabama, Florida State, and Georgia, was Arkansas. Cottrell caught 46 passes for 651 yards and nine touchdowns as a senior at Milton High.
WR | 6-5, 200 | SR Donaven McCulley
This season, McCulley led the Indiana Hoosiers in receiving with 48 receptions for 644 yards and six touchdowns, in addition to one touchdown pass of 44 yards. Speaking of passing the ball, McCulley has experience playing under center and has excellent wide receiver metrics. He was a four-star prospect when he arrived at Bloomington and, according to the 247Sports composite rankings, the 24th-best quarterback in the 2021 class.
Before switching to wide receiver the following spring, McCulley, the third true freshman in Indiana history to start a game, threw two touchdown passes in a game against Maryland in October 2021.
6-1, 175 | SR | Kris Mitchell | WR
Before Florida International’s game against Arkansas on November 18, ESPN color analyst Rod Gilmore mentioned that Mitchell was a player to watch. Boy, was Gilmore right. Mitchell was a bright spot for the Panthers as the Razorbacks won 44–20. He caught six passes for 157 yards in a single game, which is the second-most in his career, and scored an 80-yard touchdown.
Mitchell had a breakout year in 2023, finishing with 64 receptions for 1,118 yards and seven touchdowns.
Ethan Miner | GR-TR | OL | 6-2, 300
After joining the Mean Green from Arkansas State, where he started 24 games for the Red Wolves, Miner earned the starting center spot this past season. He cleared the path for North Texas to rank second in the American Athletic Conference with 191.2 rushing yards per game.
Geno VanDeMark | R-JR | OL | 6-5, 320
VanDeMark would be a real steal if he were to reunite with his former teammate Keyshawn Blackstock in a Razorback uniform. He would bring starting experience. VanDeMark was the Spartans’ starting right guard in the previous campaign, but he was injured and missed four games. Following a redshirt in 2021, VanDeMark played in 18 games overall for Michigan State, making 10 starts.
Sam Brumfield (LB) | 225 | SR | 5-11
Brumfield, one of the best linebackers in the portal right now, finished the season with 82 total tackles, 46 of which were solo, and 3.5 sacks, which put him in first place for Middle Tennessee State. He also made three fumbles forced.
In any case, Brumfield hails from Pearl, Mississippi, and there are ties between The Magnolia State and a number of defensive coordinators in Arkansas. Both secondary coach Deron Wilson and D-line coach Deke Adams attended Southern Miss, where Adams also served as an assistant coach from 2009 to 2011 and as well as a professor at Pearl River Community College from 1998 to 2002. In addition, Marcus Woodson, the co-defensive coordinator, hails from Moss Point, Mississippi; he attended Ole Miss for his college ball and began his coaching career at Jackson’s Millsaps College.
Kenan Johnson | DB | GR-TR | 6-1, 190
Pro Football Focus ranks Johnson’s 2023 defensive player grade of 75.4, the highest of any Georgia Tech player. Johnson would be a huge asset to Arkansas’ secondary and a graduate transfer with a ton of experience. After recording 29 total tackles, 20 of which were solo, three pass deflections, two forced fumbles, one recovered, and an interception, Johnson is coming off of his best season to date.
