One of the top pass catchers in the Natural State is making a name for himself and college coaches have taken notice. Ja'Quez Cross, a 5-foot-10, 170-pound receiver and safety, transferred from Hampton to Fordyce for his junior year and his productivity on both sides of the ball has put him in position to achieve a long-time dream of playing Division-I football.
Since racking up over 1,560 all-purpose yards with 17 touchdowns on the way to the Arkansas 2A state title, Cross has received plenty of offers including Army, UAPB, Akron, South Dakota State, Lamar and, most recently, the home team Arkansas State Red Wolves.
"I had been looking forward to an offer from Arkansas State because their offense fits me to a T perfectly, and they throw the ball a lot," Cross said. "Louisiana Tech and Kansas are the two big ones that are talking to me but haven't offered me yet."
Cross, who has been playing football since the second grade, said it was eighth grade when he first realised he had the skill to play in college. He started focusing his energy on the gridiron, while continuing to play basketball and other sports for his conditioning.
Transferring from Hampton to Fordyce for his junior year was a turning point for Cross, both academically and for his recruitment.
"Coming from where I'm from, Hampton, from there nobody really does anything," Cross said. "It's like going to Hampton you're probably going to be in Hampton for the rest of your life. Being able to have a lot of options and knowing I can further my career more than what people where I come from are used to means a lot to me.
"Things weren't going right in Hampton, so I announced I'd probably be moving to Fordyce to live with my aunt. Things took a whole 360. I went from probably going to JUCO or DII to getting DI offers. I had a 3.9 when corona happened and I have a 19 on the ACT already."
Coming from Arkansas 2A isn't great for Cross's exposure, so he was extremely excited to showcase his skills against some of the best in the nation–until camps were postponed indefinitely due to COVID-19.
"I had got invited to Rivals and the Opening and I felt like I could've separated myself, even coming from the smallest classification in Arkansas. I was still going to prove myself as a standout.
"In high school I line up out wide, I never played slot receiver at all, the two slots were shorter than me. We were small, but we had players. I know in college they'll probably want me to play slot receiver."
