Hogs and SEC were just enough to lure Simmons away from home

The 16th installment in a series highlighting newcomers to the Arkansas football program.

Wyatt Simmons grew up playing football and it appeared he would stay in Searcy and play for his father, Paul Simmons, at Harding University.

Searcy is where he grew up, where he attended Harding Academy and where he would remain until the end of his junior year of high school.

But that was before the world got to see the 6-foot-1, 225-pound Simmons.

On May 9, 2023, Simmons posted his first tweet: a 2-minute, 19-second highlight reel that he had just learned how to make.

Within days, it became clear to most that Simmons would not remain in Searcy much longer.

Simmons ultimately received more than 20 scholarship offers from top schools across the country, including one from his father.

On May 11, the University of Arkansas awarded him a scholarship, and six weeks later Simmons was on campus for a visit. On August 19, he committed to the Razorbacks as a linebacker.

After helping Harding Academy to the Class 4A state championship in December, Simmons signed with Arkansas as a 3-star prospect, ranked the No. 49 linebacker in the nation and the No. 7 player in the state for the class of 2024.

Now Simmons is on campus in Fayetteville, where he wants to delve deeper into a program he hadn’t even considered 15 months ago.

“It’s definitely been weird, but it’s been a blessing,” Simmons said. “I’ve been taken in like family. The transition has been super smooth. It’s definitely different, but in a good way, that’s for sure.”

These days, recruits typically know each other by the time they arrive on campus, through joint visits and group conversations. But Simmons, a late entrant, began building those relationships when he arrived — starting with his roommates, linebacker Preston Davis (Little Rock Christian) and offensive lineman Alex Johnson (Little Rock Catholic).

“I didn’t know anybody coming in,” Simmons said. “So building that community, starting over, that was probably the biggest challenge.”

Regarding living outside of Searcy for the first time:

“It’s been really good,” Simmons said. “It’s been a blessing. There’s a lot more people here than there was in Searcy, obviously, and a lot more variety. So it’s been really fun and really positive to meet a lot of different people and be exposed to environments that I didn’t even know existed.”

Simmons recorded 77 total tackles, 13 tackles for loss, 4 sacks, 1 forced fumble and 1 fumble recovery in his final season with the Wildcats, earning a spot on the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette All-Arkansas Preps second team. He finished his high school career as a three-time state champion.

The Wildcats held their offenses to 18.3 points per game last season. Simmons said they relied on the simplicity of the system, while in Fayetteville there is a significant learning curve.

“It’s just so much more complex,” he said. “I learn more every day on the installation than I did in my entire high school career.

“Coming out of high school, it’s a whole different ballgame. But right now, the focus for me is just learning the scheme, the defense and how to play.”

He said he worked on both linebacker positions for the Razorbacks during fall camp. The area he wants to improve the most for the season is his strength as he adjusts from 4A football to the SEC.

“It takes a lot of strength to be able to meet an O-lineman in the gap, and that’s something I’ve got to work on,” he said.

Despite being a coach, Paul Simmons insists on leaving the X’s and O’s to the Razorbacks’ staff, but he calls Wyatt daily to keep up to date on his oldest son’s life outside the home.

“I just want him to be the best he can be,” said Paul Simmons, who led the Bisons to their first NCAA Division II national championship last season. “I want him to be surrounded by the right people. It was always his decision, that’s for sure. There’s some pros that may not be here, but there’s some incredible pros that are here on campus that are nowhere in the country to be matched, and he knows that and I know that.

“I wish the Bisons could play on a different day than the Razorbacks.”

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Simmons at a glance

CLASS Freshmen

POSITION Line defender

HEIGHT/WEIGHT 6-1, 224 pounds

AGE 19 (born December 17, 2004)

HOMETOWN To search

SECONDARY SCHOOL Harding Academy

REMARKABLE He recorded 77 total tackles, 13 tackles for loss, 4 sacks, 1 forced fumble and 1 fumble recovery as a senior. … Led Harding Academy to three state championships, including the Class 4A title as a senior. … Received scholarship offers from several NCAA Division I schools, including Clemson, Auburn, Oklahoma, Ole Miss, SMU and Texas. … A consensus 3-star prospect, he was ranked the No. 49 linebacker in the nation and the No. 7 player in Arkansas for the Class of 2024, according to the 247Sports composite. … His father, Paul Simmons, coached Harding University to the NCAA Division II national championship last season.

Linebacker Wyatt Simmons (right) helped Harding Academy to three state championships in his high school career. Simmons, the son of Harding University Coach Paul Simmons, is in his first season at the University of Arkansas. (Arkansas Democrat-Gazette/Colin Murphey)