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Arkansas dipped into the transfer portal to add another quarterback for the 2021 season.
Former three-star prospect Kade Renfro is heading to Fayetteville after spending one year at Ole Miss, HawgBeat has confirmed. He will be a walk-on for the Razorbacks.
Renfro has already enrolled at Arkansas and will participate in spring practice.
A two-year starter in high school, Renfro completed 59.3 percent of his passes (156 of 263) for 2,372 yards, 17 touchdowns and 11 interceptions in 11 games as a senior in 2019 at Stephenville High in Texas.
It is the same high school as former high-profile quarterbacks Branndon Stewart (Tennessee/Texas A&M), Kevin Kolb (Houston), Jevan Snead (Texas/Ole Miss) and Jarrett Stidham (Baylor/Auburn), as well as where Art Briles and Chad Morris previously coached.
In March of his junior year, Renfro asserted himself as an FBS-caliber quarterback by taking home MVP honors at an Elite 11 Regional in Houston. That helped him earn a 5.5 three-star rating from Rivals.
Originally committed to North Texas, Renfro backed off that pledge when some Power Five programs came calling late in the process.
Arkansas offensive coordinator Kendal Briles - who won a state title at Stephenville while playing quarterback for his father - actually recruited him while at Florida State and Mike Norvell continued those efforts when he took over as the Seminoles’ head coach.
However, Renfro ultimately chose Ole Miss over Florida State. A key in his decision was the Rebels’ offensive coordinator, Jeff Lebby, who - in addition to being Briles’ brother-in-law - recruited Renfro while at UCF.
Despite being the lone quarterback in Ole Miss’ 2020 class and enrolling early, Renfro was converted to wide receiver and spent much of the season at that position, but never appeared in a game. He opted to enter the transfer portal in early December.
With the Razorbacks, Renfro will join a quarterback battle that many expect to come down to redshirt freshman K.J. Jefferson and freshman Malik Hornsby. The only other returning scholarship quarterback is John Stephen Jones.
Arkansas signed a pair of quarterbacks in its 2021 class, with Lucas Coley from San Antonio already on campus and Landon Rogers out of Little Rock Parkview set to join the team this summer. It also had two walk-on quarterbacks this past season in North Texas transfer Cade Pearson and in-state freshman Braden Bratcher.
