By Otis Kirk
FAYETTEVILLE -- Arkansas has signed former University of South Florida linebacker Antonio Grier.
Grier, 6-1, 223, signed with Arkansas on Thursday. He had previously committed to Travis Williams when he was the defensive coordinator at UCF. When Williams left to take the same job with the Razorbacks then Grier opted to follow him to Fayetteville.
In 2022, Grier had 21 tackles including 12 solo, and 0.5 for loss. Against Florida, Grier was outstanding. He had 10 tackles and 0.5 for loss against the Gators. He was limited to three games in 2022 due to a hand injury.
In his career at USF, Grier had 228 tackles, 133 solo, 10 sacks, a pass breakup, four forced fumbles and two interceptions returning one for a touchdown.
Grier played high school football at Atlanta (Ga.) Mays. At Mays, he played for head coach Tony Slaton. Named all-region defensive player of the year as a senior. In three seasons, totaled 214 tackles, 19.0 tackles for loss, six sacks, eight forced fumbles, seven fumble recoveries and three interceptions. As a senior, posted 109 tackles, eight tackles for loss, two sacks and two forced fumbles.
At Arkansas, Grier will have one season of eligibility and will arrive on Jan. 13. He is the fifth transfer to sign with the Hogs. He joins former Morrilton and North Carolina quarterback Jacolby Criswell, 6-1, 205; Florida offensive guard Josh Braun, 6-6, 335; Texas A&M=Commerce wide receiver Andrew Armstrong, 6-5, 189; and Pitt defensive end John Morgan III, 6-2, 265.
The NCAA has a new rule allowing schools to host portal recruits on Jan. 4-8. Arkansas' Sam Pittman plans to take advantage of that rule.
"The 4th through the 8th, I'm going to tell you it should and it needs to be anywhere from six to 12 kids on campus," Pittman said. "Now, we have to be position-specific and all those type things, but we have some scholarships available and certainly we feel like we can change the depth and the team in that period. It's obviously the first time they've allowed it to happen. But we are excited about that period as well."
Pittman also talked about what he will be looking for from the transfer portal.
"I think we need to get another lineman," Pittman said. "We need to get a tight end. Certainly wide receiver, we may need two or three coming out of there. Defensive backs. We’ve got to get a few. Linebackers still. I really like our linebackers. All these guys on our team I really like but we just don’t have any depth, with guys leaving and guys going to the NFL and things of that nature. But linebackers there. I think we’ve got the pass rusher that will help the pass rushers that we have. But I think we probably need to go inside and get another big man as well. That’s probably talking about 10 or 12 guys and we have those scholarships available."
Arkansas will face Kansas in the AutoZone Liberty Bowl on Wednesday. The kickoff is set for 4:30 p.m. and televised on ESPN.