Bryant junior Catrell Wallace receives scholarship offer during Saturday visit.
Bryant junior outside linebacker-defensive end Catrell Wallace visited the University of Arkansas on Saturday and received a scholarship offer from Coach Chad Morris prior to the game against Vanderbilt.
“During the Hog walk, a couple of coaches walked up to me and talked about how Coach Morris wanted to see me,” Wallace said.
Wallace, 6-6, 210 pounds, is the second in-state prospect in the 2020 class to have an offer from the Hogs. Morrilton junior quarterback Jacolby Criswell earned an offer at an Arkansas camp in June.
Morris met with Wallace and told him of his first offer.
“We talked about how they’ve been watching me, and he thought I would be a good person for the program and he offered me,” Wallace said. “I was speechless. I didn’t think they were going to offer me.”
Hornets Coach Buck James said Wallace is raw, but is very gifted and has loads of potential.
“He still has a little ways to go,” James said. “The thing about him is, he’s aggressive, he plays hard and he’s a leader. He’s not fully matured or developed yet by any means.”
Missouri, Mississippi State, Memphis and Louisiana Tech are others showing interest in Bryant. The offer from the Hogs gives him confidence that other schools will follow Arkansas’ lead.
“It meant a lot,” Wallace said. “It really made me think about what else I could be doing. Other offers, getting more out there.”
Wallace was born in Arkansas and lived about two years in Minnesota while in elementary school before moving back to the Natural State. He said he wasn’t tempted to commit after getting the offer from Morris.
“Not at this point. I still have another year,” Wallace said. “I don’t want to make too irrational of a decision.”
Versatility comes to James’ mind when thinking of Wallace.
“He plays outside linebacker, plays middle linebacker, he’s played D-end in a game, he’s played safety, all in the same game,” James said. “He’s on the kickoff team, punt team. He covers well, he can run down the field.
“If you project him at 240 pounds, he could still stay at outside linebacker. If he gets bigger than that, he could make the adjustment to D-lineman. He might even grow into being an inside linebacker.”
Despite growing up in Arkansas, Wallace didn’t watch many Razorbacks games in his younger days or even now.
“I don’t watch a lot of college football,” he said. “I watched the playoffs, but that’s about it. I actually prefer playing instead of watching because I get too excited just watching. I can’t do anything but wait.”
Wallace, who had 35 tackles and 3 sacks as a sophomore, has recorded 60 tackles, 5 tackles for loss, 2 sacks, 6 quarterback hits, 2 forced fumbles, 1 recovered fumble and 3 pass breakups this season.
He ran an impressive 4.2 seconds in the agility shuttle at a Memphis camp over the summer. James said his speed in the 40-yard dash is impressive, too.
“He’s probably a legit 4.6 or 4.7 guy,” James said. “He can run.”
Despite being a raw talent, Wallace stands out.
“I’ve had better football players, but on some given Friday nights you can look out there and he’s the best player on the field without a doubt,” James said. “He’s doing that while he’s still raw.”