Dion Stutts gives his reasons for picking Arkansas

Fayetteville, Arkansas – Dion Stutts, a defensive lineman from Memphis University School in Tennessee, committed to Arkansas on Saturday and then elaborated on his decision to play for the Razorbacks later that day.

Stutts, 6-3, 265 pounds, was questioned about the decision to select Arkansas and if it was a challenging one.

“Yes sir,” Stutts said. “I would say it wasn’t too hard a decision. I knew when I came up here in January for my first visit I knew that I wanted to call it home. But I wanted to get my family, my brothers up here, to see how they felt about it. See if they liked it. They loved it. The coaches stay in contact with me. They treated me like I was family. They talked to my parents and my brothers so it was an easy decision.”

Stutts is more of a defensive end at his high school, but will he play end or inside at Arkansas?

“He said he would like for me to be an inside guy because I play end and know all the roles of end,” Stutts said. “He can help me get better at it, but he can mold me to play interior and I can play D-end if I needed to be. I think if I go to Arkansas he’s going to want me more as a tackle.”

Stutts asked if he was okay with going inside.

“Oh yes sir, I’m perfectly fine with that,” Stutts said. “If they want to put me at tackle and whatever I’m fine with that. My mindset is to go where they need me to go and do the best I can at that position.”

Stutts has received numerous offers, and when he talks about what he excels at, colleges are drawn to hire him.

“I have a great motor,” Stutts said. “If I want something I’m going to get it. They watched my film and they said I’m a very good competitor. I will find ways to get to the ball and I won’t give up until I get it. I have a good mindset. They can coach me and mold me into what they need me to be. They know that I have the motor and mindset to go get it.”

Stutts not only attended the Saturday Prospect Day but also the second spring practice on Friday.

“I was watching Coach (Sam) PIttman coach,” Stutts said. “He got onto the guys when they weren’t picking up what they needed to pick up. They were slacking at first. He got them right. He rewarded them when they needed to be rewarded and got on them when they needed to get going. I loved watching Coach (Deke) Adams with his defensive group. He coached them real good. I got to watch in the film room and they were coaching me through like I was already a player at Arkansas. I like how they did that.”

The travel time to Fayetteville from Stutts’ house was another advantage of Arkansas.

“It’s pretty good,” Stutts said. “I live in Batesville, Mississippi, and it’s a five-hour drive for me. My parents said it’s not that bad of drive because it’s straight highway and straight down there. Really, I loved it. It was great and we’re almost home already. So it wasn’t that bad of drive. It’s great.”

The two pledges for 2024 are Stutts and 6-3, 250-pound four-star edge rusher Kavion Henderson of Leeds (Ala.).