From @DanielFair
The NCAA released the recruiting calendar for the 2024-2025 athletic year, and it featured some changes from the previous year that will affect the Arkansas Razorbacks.
Most of the schedule, which starts in August and ends in July the following year, looks the same as last year, however there are a few stark differences. The most glaring one will change how Arkansas handles its annual Hogwild Hangout.
In year's past, there has been a quiet period at the end of July, which gives teams one final push to get recruits on campus before fall camp starts. Among other schools, Texas A&M has a pool party, Oklahoma has the Party at the Palace and Sooners Under the Stars, and Arkansas has its Hogwild Hangout, which will be held Saturday.
That will not be the case in 2025. The NCAA instituted a dead period that starts the last week of June and stretches all the way through the end of July. Traditionally, there's a dead period that starts on August 1 of every year, so it's safe to say the dead period could go from the last weekend of June all the way to the start of the 2025 season.
This means the Hogwild Hangout will either have to be rescheduled to earlier in the summer, or canceled altogether.
The Razorbacks have had good success with the Hogwild Hangout in recent years, grabbing commitments from guys like now-Arkansas linebacker Justin Logan and 2025 four-star safety Marcus Wimberly, who later de-committed and chose Oklahoma, in the same weekend.
It's worth noting that coaches can still communicate via texts and social media, but the Hogwild Hangout weekend was a good way for the Arkansas coaching staff to circle back on their commits in person and solidify their commitments ahead of the start of fall camp and the ensuing football season.
It was also a way for coaches to make inroads on future classes, as well. While the coaches are working on the class of 2025, the Hogwild Hangout also allowed them to see athletes in the classes of 2026 and 2027 to start building relationships early on in the process.
There is still a Hogwild Hangout this year, and Arkansas will host dozens of recruits from those classes to keep the steam going for the class of 2025, which includes 17 total commits so far.
This year, there is no such contact period. The evaluation period — which is when coaches can go off campus to watch recruits and talk to their coaches — stretches from Sept. 1 to Dec. 1, and then a dead period starts from Dec. 2-8. After that is a quiet period, so coaches can host recruits on campus, but can't go off campus to visit them in their homes.
It's likely that the reasoning for this decision from the NCAA stems from the Early Signing Period being significantly earlier this year than in years past. This year, recruits can sign their letters of intent from Dec. 4 to 6, and there has traditionally been a dead period surrounding that time.
Recruiting in 2024 can't be done without working the transfer portal, and it would appear that will remain mostly unchanged from last year. The portal opens the day after teams are selected for the new 12-team College Football Playoff, and that's when the mania begins.
As far as recruiting the portal goes, there is a four-day window from Jan. 1-5 — which is a dead period for high school recruiting — where teams can host two- and four-year transfers on visits.
After that period ends, the calendar heads into a contact period where coaches can go on the road and talk to recruits in person off-campus. That includes both high school recruits and transfer recruits as well.
For example, former Razorback defensive end John Morgan III, who transferred to Arkansas from Pittsburgh, told HawgBeat in Dec. 2022 that Arkansas head coach Sam Pittman and defensive line coach Deke Adams visited his home in Maryland, which is what swayed his decision to sign with Arkansas.
Last year, Arkansas took upwards of 20 transfers from the portal and many are expected to see significant playing time during the 2024 season, including Boise State transfer quarterback Taylen Green, Utah transfer running back Ja'Quinden Jackson, Georgia transfer linebacker Xavian Sorey Jr.
The Arkansas Razorbacks are set to start fall camp next week, and the football season is just over five weeks away with the Hogs taking on UAPB at War Memorial Stadium in Little Rock on Aug. 29. Stay tuned to HawgBeat for the latest Arkansas football news.
The NCAA released the recruiting calendar for the 2024-2025 athletic year, and it featured some changes from the previous year that will affect the Arkansas Razorbacks.
Most of the schedule, which starts in August and ends in July the following year, looks the same as last year, however there are a few stark differences. The most glaring one will change how Arkansas handles its annual Hogwild Hangout.
In year's past, there has been a quiet period at the end of July, which gives teams one final push to get recruits on campus before fall camp starts. Among other schools, Texas A&M has a pool party, Oklahoma has the Party at the Palace and Sooners Under the Stars, and Arkansas has its Hogwild Hangout, which will be held Saturday.
That will not be the case in 2025. The NCAA instituted a dead period that starts the last week of June and stretches all the way through the end of July. Traditionally, there's a dead period that starts on August 1 of every year, so it's safe to say the dead period could go from the last weekend of June all the way to the start of the 2025 season.
This means the Hogwild Hangout will either have to be rescheduled to earlier in the summer, or canceled altogether.
The Razorbacks have had good success with the Hogwild Hangout in recent years, grabbing commitments from guys like now-Arkansas linebacker Justin Logan and 2025 four-star safety Marcus Wimberly, who later de-committed and chose Oklahoma, in the same weekend.
It's worth noting that coaches can still communicate via texts and social media, but the Hogwild Hangout weekend was a good way for the Arkansas coaching staff to circle back on their commits in person and solidify their commitments ahead of the start of fall camp and the ensuing football season.
It was also a way for coaches to make inroads on future classes, as well. While the coaches are working on the class of 2025, the Hogwild Hangout also allowed them to see athletes in the classes of 2026 and 2027 to start building relationships early on in the process.
There is still a Hogwild Hangout this year, and Arkansas will host dozens of recruits from those classes to keep the steam going for the class of 2025, which includes 17 total commits so far.
End of Football Season Changes
The new NCAA calendar also changes how coaches will approach recruiting at the end of the season. Last season's calendar included a contact period that started on Dec. 1 and ended on Dec. 16. That gave coaches the chance to go out on the road and visit recruits in their homes to either solidify their commitment to the Razorbacks, or work to flip a commitment in the Hogs' favor.This year, there is no such contact period. The evaluation period — which is when coaches can go off campus to watch recruits and talk to their coaches — stretches from Sept. 1 to Dec. 1, and then a dead period starts from Dec. 2-8. After that is a quiet period, so coaches can host recruits on campus, but can't go off campus to visit them in their homes.
It's likely that the reasoning for this decision from the NCAA stems from the Early Signing Period being significantly earlier this year than in years past. This year, recruits can sign their letters of intent from Dec. 4 to 6, and there has traditionally been a dead period surrounding that time.
Transfer Portal Changes
Recruiting in 2024 can't be done without working the transfer portal, and it would appear that will remain mostly unchanged from last year. The portal opens the day after teams are selected for the new 12-team College Football Playoff, and that's when the mania begins.
As far as recruiting the portal goes, there is a four-day window from Jan. 1-5 — which is a dead period for high school recruiting — where teams can host two- and four-year transfers on visits.
After that period ends, the calendar heads into a contact period where coaches can go on the road and talk to recruits in person off-campus. That includes both high school recruits and transfer recruits as well.
For example, former Razorback defensive end John Morgan III, who transferred to Arkansas from Pittsburgh, told HawgBeat in Dec. 2022 that Arkansas head coach Sam Pittman and defensive line coach Deke Adams visited his home in Maryland, which is what swayed his decision to sign with Arkansas.
Last year, Arkansas took upwards of 20 transfers from the portal and many are expected to see significant playing time during the 2024 season, including Boise State transfer quarterback Taylen Green, Utah transfer running back Ja'Quinden Jackson, Georgia transfer linebacker Xavian Sorey Jr.
The Arkansas Razorbacks are set to start fall camp next week, and the football season is just over five weeks away with the Hogs taking on UAPB at War Memorial Stadium in Little Rock on Aug. 29. Stay tuned to HawgBeat for the latest Arkansas football news.
