Musselman’s classes rank near the top each year
University of Arkansas men’s basketball Coach Eric Musselman and his staff have upped the Hogs’ recruiting footprint on the national level since arriving in Fayetteville in the spring of 2019.
When comparing Musselman’s recruiting class with previous classes, the numbers are startling, according to On3.com Industry Rankings. From 2010 to 2019, the Hogs had one top-10 class. The 2013 class of 5-star forward Bobby Portis and 4-star center Moses Kingsley came in at No. 10 in the country.
The five-member 2011 class ranked No. 11 nationally, which was headed by 5-star guard BJ Young.
Arkansas’ recruiting classes from 2010-19 averaged No. 54.3 nationally. The 2019 class skewed the averaged overall ranking with Justice Hill being the lone signee and placing the class No. 174 in the country. If the 2019 class was excluded, the average class ranking would be No. 41 nationally.
Now Musselman looks to be in line to sign his third top10 class in five years.
The Hogs’ 2024 class has commitments from consensus 4-star prospects Jalen Shelley and Isaiah Elohim, and the class currently ranks No. 8 nationally.
Shelley, 6-9, 185 pounds, of Link Academy in Branson, pledged to the Razorbacks first on Sept. 11 after making an official visit to Fayetteville the previous three days.
He chose Arkansas over scholarship offers from Ohio State, Houston, LSU, Colorado, Louisville, Marquette and Texas A&M.
Elohim, 6-5, 205 pounds, of Northridge (Calif.) Sierra Canyon, committed to Musselman and staff about 2 1/2 weeks later after officially visiting Arkansas for the BYU football game weekend on Sept. 15-17.
He also visited Kansas and Villanova and had trips planned for USC and Providence.
On3.com’s industry ranking lists Shelley as the No. 17 small forward and the No. 52 overall prospect in the nation, while Elohim is the No. 9 shooting guard and No. 38 overall prospect. The average rating for the combined pledges comes out at 95.56.
Arkansas’ 2020 class of four signees — Moses Moody, Jaylin Williams, Davonte Davis and Khalen Robinson — was ranked No. 7 by On3.com’s Industry Rankings and was rated as high as No. 5 nationally by ESPN. The four prospects’ average rating was 94.30.
The 2022 class of six signees — Nick Smith Jr., Anthony Black, Jordan Walsh, Barry Dunning, Derrian Ford and Joseph Pinion — gave Arkansas the No. 2 class which only trailed Duke. The average prospect rating was 95.02.
The 2023 class of Baye Faye and Layden Blocker just missed being a top-10 class with a ranking of No. 11 nationally and an average rating of 96.21 per prospect.
The Hogs’ lone 2021 signee, 4-star Chance Moore, placed Arkansas’ ranking at No. 38 nationally. Moore’s rating was 92.14.
Only Wisconsin-Milwaukee and Auburn had one signee and finished in the top 15 nationally at No. 12 and 13 respectively. Both schools signed a 5-star prospect.
Musselman’s five class average national ranking is 13.2. If the 2021 class with Moore is not counted, the average class ranking is No. 7 nationally.
From 2010 to 2019, the average prospect rating averaged 87.64, while Musselman and staff’s average prospect rating is 94.68.