Markell Utsey (6’4 290) is the latest transfer to call the Razorbacks. He is originally from Little Rock Parkview High School as a member of the 2016 class.
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— 9️⃣ (@_90Problems) April 25, 2021
Utsey was not highly recruited out of high school with two offers from Missouri and Arizona. He signed with Missouri and played five season there while redshirting one. Utsey will benefit from an extra year of eligibility for all college athletes who played during the 2020 season.
In his five seasons in Columbia, Missouri, Utsey recorded 40 total tackles and one career sack.
He played under current Arkansas defensive coordinator Barry Odom from 2016-2019 while Odom was the head coach at Missouri. However, Utsey really came on the scene last year with 19 tackles and 2 tackles for a loss. Those are solid numbers from the defensive tackle position.
The addition of Utsey comes at a good time for the Razorbacks defensive line with some concern of a “lack of pass rush” in the spring game. That shouldn’t be worrisome since you can’t take away too much from a glorified spring practice.
As mentioned above, this is Arkansas’ fifth addition via the transfer portal in 2021.
QB Kade Renfro
WR Warren Thompson
OT Ty’kieast Crawford
CB Trent Gordon
DT Markell Utsey