2014 Drafted and Undrafted Free Agents Who Played in Arkansas and Have Signed
Updates to this post are at the bottom.
Four Razorbacks and one senior from the Arkansas State Red Wolves were selected during the three-day 2014 NFL Draft, which concluded Saturday.
The four Razorbacks taken total pushes the University of Arkansas’ all-time draftee number to 189, including 22 first-round selections.
The Hogs produced at least three draft picks for the fourth straight year, which ranks as the second-longest streak in school history and longest since 1969-77. In the last four drafts, Arkansas’ 12 offensive players selected ranks second in the SEC and tied for fourth in the NCAA.
The Razorbacks had at least one draft pick for the 19th consecutive year, a streak that also ranks second in school history. The school record for consecutive drafts featuring at least one Razorback is 23 from 1965-87.
During Friday’s third round, Travis Swanson became the highest-drafted center in school history when the Detroit Lions selected him with the 76th overall pick. Saturday featured three picks led by Chris Smith taken in the fifth round by the Jacksonville Jaguars, whose staff coached him at the Senior Bowl. Kiero Small was picked in the seventh round by the defending Super Bowl champion Seattle Seahawks, and one pick later Zach Hocker became the third kicker in program history drafted when he was selected by the Washington Redskins.
After helping lead the Arkansas State football team to three consecutive Sun Belt Conference championships from 2011-13, defensive lineman Ryan Carrethers (Nashville, Tenn.) was selected by the San Diego Chargers in the fifth round of the 2014 NFL Draft.
With 14 former players taken this year, the current Arkansas Razorback coaching staff has coached 169 draft picks, including 27 first-round selections. During Thursday’s first round, Ja’Wuan James, an offensive lineman coached at Tennessee by Jim Chaney and Sam Pittman, was selected 19th overall by the Miami Dolphins and Jason Verrett, a cornerback coached at TCU by Clay Jennings, was taken 25th overall by the San Diego Chargers.
Friday’s two rounds featured four more draft picks coached by the current Razorback coaching staff. Bishop Sankey, a record-setting running back coached at Washington by Joel Thomas, was the 54th overall pick by the Tennessee Titans. Safety Dezmen Southward and linebacker Chris Borland, both coached at Wisconsin by Bret Bielema, were sandwiched around Swanson’s selection in the third round. Southwward was picked 68th overall by the Atlanta Falcons and Borland was taken 77th overall by the San Francisco 49ers.
Eight more were added to the list in four rounds Saturday. Russell Bodine, a center coached at North Carolina by Pittman, and James White, a running back at Wisconsin for Bielema, were taken in the fourth round before Smith’s fifth-round selection. Another Wisconsin product, wide receiver Jared Abbrederis, was picked in the fifth round before Tennessee offensive guard Zach Fulton was taken in the sixth. Beau Allen, a defensive tackle from Wisconsin, was taken off the board two picks before Small and Hocker.
The Chargers spent their fourth pick of the draft on Carrethers, who was the 25th player taken in the fifth round and the 165th player chosen overall. While the Red Wolves have seen former players sign a free agent contract with the Chargers, Carrethers becomes the first to ever be drafted by the franchise. Carrethers will join former Arkansas State tight end David Johnson at San Diego, which signed Johnson to a two-year contract on March 12, 2014.
The Red Wolves have now had a player chosen in a school-record eight consecutive NFL Drafts, including Oren O’Neal in 2007, Tyrell Johnson in 2008, David Johnson in 2009, defensive end Alex Carrington in 2010, offensive lineman Derek Newton in 2011, linebacker Demario Davis in 2012 and defensive back Don Jones in 2013. Not only are the eight consecutive years with a draft selection a school record, it is tied for the third longest streak among the “Group of Five” conferences.
Carrethers became the 47th A-State player to ever be selected in the NFL Draft. Over 125 all-time Arkansas State players have signed pro contracts with an NFL franchise.
A two-time First Team All-Sun Belt Conference defensive tackle, Carrethers completed his A-State career with 172 tackles, 14.5 tackles for loss and 6.5 sacks. He put together one of the strongest seasons ever by a defensive player in Arkansas State history last year. He ranked third in the nation in tackles among defensive linemen with 93 to his credit, living up to his preseason hype that placed him on the Bednarik Award and Outland Trophy watch lists and CBSSports.com’s Freak’s List compiled by Dennis Dodd.
His 93 total tackles last year were the second most on the team and ranked eighth in the Sun Belt Conference. He posted double-figure stops in two games, including a career-high 16 against Louisiana-Lafayette that were the most in the nation among defensive linemen for a single game.
His performance against the Ragin’ Cajuns earned him Sun Belt Conference Defensive Player of the Week honors. Carrethers tallied at least seven tackles in eight outings, while also finishing the year with eight tackles for loss and four sacks, which were both career highs.
He posted at least one tackle for loss in five games, including a career-high two twice. Additionally, he recorded his first career field goal block against ULM and, in a twist, lined up at fullback against Western Kentucky to record a touchdown on his only career rushing attempt.
Carrethers completed his career in dramatic fashion in the GoDaddy Bowl, blocking a 38-yard field goal attempt by Ball State’s Scott Secor as time expired to secure a 23-20 win for the Red Wolves. The Nashville, Tenn., native earned his bachelor’s degree in Interdisciplinary Studies from Arkansas State University in August of 2013.
A list of undrafted free agents who have signed with teams is here, including Jestin Love from the UCA Bears, who has been signed by the Altanta Falcons; Chase Dixon from UCA, who has signed with the Seattle Seahawks; and the University of Arkansas’ David Hurd (Miami Dolphins); Javontee Herndon (San Diego Chargers); and Robert Thomas (Washington Redskins).
UPDATES:
The Atlanta Falcons announced Monday they have signed former Arkansas State standout wide receiver Julian Jones to a free agent contract.
Jones completed his senior season ranked among the top 10 players in the Sun Belt Conference in both receptions and receiving yards, finishing the 2013 campaign eighth in receptions and ninth in yards. His 52 catches were the second most on the team and the 10th most in school history for a single season.
The Germantown, Tenn., native ended the year with 641 receiving yards, which were the second most on the team as well, and four touchdown receptions that tied J.D. McKissic for the most on the squad. He caught at least one pass in every game, including 10 for 136 yards, both career highs, and a touchdown against Missouri.
Jones concluded his career with 11 touchdown receptions, the sixth most in A-State history. His junior season saw him post seven touchdown receptions, the third most in school history for a single season, on just 13 catches. He recorded 394 receiving yards that season, averaging 30.3 yards per catch. He moved from defensive back to wide receiver as a sophomore in 2011, when he caught four passes for 88 yards.
AND…
Chris Rycraw, a running back from Ouachita Baptist, has been invited to participate in a rookie orientation camp on a tryout basis with the Green Bay Packers.
AND…
Former All-SEC defensive end Chris Smith was featured on the Jacksonville Jaguars’ website Wednesday as the team posted its Rookie Premiere.
Smith was taken in the fifth round, 159th overall, by the Jaguars, whose coaching staff led Smith as the South Team coaching staff at the Senior Bowl in January. Smith was the second Arkansas defensive end selected in the last three drafts after he appeared in 43 games and made 27 starts, including each of the final 24 games of his career.
Smith was asked about many topics, including his goals for the season as well as working with the Jacksonville staff at the Senior Bowl.
“It’s all about making the 53-man roster,” Smith said. “It’s about working hard each and every day and getting better. I got a jump start on learning the scheme at the Senior Bowl. I remember the base of the scheme, and now I’ll build on that.”
Smith also touched on his time at Arkansas.
“I learned great things at Arkansas,” Smith said. “I wouldn’t replace it for anything.”
The entire video can be seen here. Smith’s segment begins at the 42:05 mark.
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