BREAKING: Sanford picks Arkansas over Tennessee, others
It took just one official visit for Alex Sanford to make a decision about his future.
The three-star linebacker committed to Arkansas while in Fayetteville this weekend and went public with his decision Sunday. He picked the Razorbacks from a top three that also included Tennessee and Jackson State.
"For one, me personally, I'm real family orientated,” Sanford said. “Come to Arkansas and it's family everywhere. Coach Pittman, he’s like family, Coach Scherer, he's like family. The players are like family. Everybody is straight family. I'm real family orientated, so it's got to be family first.
"Then the way this defense is set up for me. It's set up for linebackers to make plays. When you come here you're going to make plays. You are going to get playing time. So there's lots you are going to do here. That's why I'm coming here."
Sanford is the 16th member of Arkansas’ 2023 recruiting class and the fourth commitment in a span of eight days — the last two of which have come on back-to-back days, as cornerback RJ Johnson committed Saturday.
Listed at 6-foot-2, 225 pounds, the Oxford, Miss., native also had an SEC offer from his hometown school, Ole Miss, as well as numerous Group of Five offers — Arkansas State, Memphis, Middle Tennessee State, South Alabama, Southern Miss and Troy.
During his official visit at Arkansas, Sanford was hosted by freshman linebacker Mani Powell.
"The visit went great,” Sanford said. “There's no other experience like it. When you get here for the visit all the coaches, players, whoever is here it's going to feel like home."
Although he’s classified as an inside linebacker on Rivals, Sanford is versatile enough to be used as an edge rusher. He did a little bit of both at Oxford High, racking up more than 120 tackles — including several behind the line of scrimmage — with a pair of pass breakups and forced fumbles while playing in a multiple scheme.
The Razorbacks now have three linebackers committed for 2023. Everett Roussaw is another inside linebacker, while Carson Dean is an outside linebacker.
As a 5.7 three-star recruit, Sanford gives the Razorbacks another 90-point bump in the Rivals recruiting rankings. That moves them ahead of Georgia for the top spot in the SEC and No. 9 overall.