Rivals150 big, Arkansas player of the year Jaylin Williams signs with Hogs

Rivals150 4-star center Jaylin Williams has finally made it official with his signature to the University of Arkansas, the program just an hour away from his home in Fort Smith.

Williams selected Arkansas over Auburn, Oklahoma State, UConn, Illinois, Texas A&M, TCU and several more options. Going from unrated to top 100 after his junior season at Northside High School, Williams concludes his recruitment rated as the 61st best prospect in the 2020 class, he is also the 9th best center nationally.

Williams trended to both Oklahoma State and Auburn at points of his recruitment but Eric Musselman and his staff would not let a 6-foot-10 4-star leave the state of Arkansas. Multiple unofficial visits, his official visit, his relationship with the staff and the comradery of the 2020 in-state prospects all contributed to Williams calling the Hogs.

“It was a big thing for me to play at home. Whenever I went to one of the home games, the amount of support and love I got was amazing,” Williams said after his decision. “It helped knowing that all of the coaches have experienced the NBA and Coach Muss has a lot of connections.”

In his senior season that ended in the state semi-finals, Williams topped the Grizzlies team with 19.6 points per game, 12.6 rebounds, 2.7 assists, 2.5 blocks and 1.1 steals.

On the Nike EYBL circuit, he posted per-game averages of 10.4 points, 9.6 rebounds, 1.8 assist and 1.1 blocks for Woodz Elite. He also made over 35-percent of his perimeter attempts. Williams's season helped him win the Gatorade Arkansas Player of the Year award.

Williams is one of four 4-star pieces in Arkansas's 2020 recruiting class, which is ranked 9th in the nation by Rivals and fourth in the SEC behind Kentucky, Tennessee and LSU.

Moses Moody is ranked No.54, Williams is No.61, KK Robinson is No.67 and. Davonte Davis is No.132. The fourth piece, Robinson, is due to sign on April 20th.