Arkansas added commit No.13 on Thursday afternoon, Frisco High School cornerback Chase Lowery. Lowery is the second corner commit for Sam Pittman's 2021 class, joining Keuan Parker from Oklahoma, and he's the fourth commit in the class from the Lone Star State.
HawgBeat caught up with Frisco head coach Jeff Harbert to get the inside scoop on Lowery and what he'll be bringing to the Hill in 2021. A former defensive coordinator, Harbert was promoted to head coach at Frisco for the 2019 season and led the Racoons to an 11-2 record with a third round appearance in the 5A D2 playoffs. Harbert has been at Frisco High for 15 years and the program has sent players to Texas Tech, SMU, Duke, New Mexico, New Mexico State and UConn during that span.
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NIKKI: What can you tell me about how Chase has grown since you began coaching him this season?
COACH HARBERT: Chase came to us from a private school last spring, he's kind of a quiet kid. He went to middle school with our guys so he knew them, but he still wasn't comfortable taking on a leadership role. Fair, unfair, however you want to look at it, because of his ability, that light was cast upon him. He went from a guy that was just kind of content to follow and do what some of the older people were doing, to a guy that came to understand that his actions carry a lott more weight than he thought. He took it upon himself to turn that corner and be that guy we needed him to be down the stretch. That was a big catalyst for us towards the end of the season to get us where we were going.
NIKKI: Could you tell he was going to be a high-level recruit when he came in?
COACH HARBERT: We knew he had an offer from Iowa State, so you assume the ability is there. And then once we got the pads on, it was very apparent he was different than anybody we had around here. His ball skills, his defensive IQ, the way he's able to see things happen before they happen, and then whenever he's able to get the ball in his hands, the ability to do something special with it. You probably notice it on the offensive side faster than you do on the defensive side. You put the ball up there between two people and he'll grab it one-handed, it's like golly. He's a special player for sure.
NIKKI: For Chase to see the field, what do you feel like he should work on between now and Arkansas?
COACH HARBERT: Chase's big deal right now is he's a multi-sport guy, which is awesome, that's what high schoolers need to do. But at the same time, he goes from football to basketball to spring drills, so he's never had an extended period of time in the weight room to work on his frame. I think that'll be the biggest area of growth when he's able to focus on football. I think that'll allow him to take off and be a top player for Arkansas.
