Could Bobby Petrino hire put Fayetteville’s Drake Lindsey on Razorbacks’ radar?
FAYETTEVILLE, ARKANSAS - With Wednesday’s announcement that former Arkansas head coach Bobby Petrino would be returning as the football program’s offensive coordinator next season, many Razorbacks fans are hopeful that Fayetteville senior quarterback Drake Lindsey will now be on the Hogs’ radar.
The 6-foot-5, 220-pound Lindsey has not received much interest from Arkansas thus far, although he has been one of the state’s top quarterbacks for the past two seasons.
He has completed nearly 70 percent of his passes this season for 3,563 yards and 51 touchdowns. Despite not playing in the second half of some blowout wins, he has still averaged over 300 yards and more than four touchdowns passes per game, while throwing just two interceptions in 327 pass attempts.
Drake Lindsey has seen little recruiting interest from the University of Arkansas. (Photo by Ted McClenning)
Lindsey has one final high school game remaining, that being Saturday’s Class 7A state championship showdown with rival Bentonville in Little Rock’s War Memorial Stadium.
Lindsey is a high 3-star prospect, rated the No. 5 player in the state and the No. 33 quarterback, nationally, according to 247Sports. He gave his verbal commitment to the University of Minnesota on May 12.
The Lindsey family has deep roots in the Razorbacks football program, dating back to the early 1960s, which has caused some local disappointment that he is not getting a chance to continue that legacy in Fayetteville.
“They just really didn’t have interest in me, and that’s not my decision to take part in,” Lindsey said. “I mean, God has a plan for me, and I truly believe that. I feel like there’s a reason I’m going to Minnesota and there’s a reason for everything that happens. I can’t say much about it, other than they didn’t have interest in me and didn’t think I was good enough to play there, I guess.”
Growing up a life-long Hog fan, the youngster was disappointed, at first, when he didn’t get the attention of the Arkansas program.
“Maybe at the beginning, when I started getting offers, it hurt a little bit, but I just developed a different mindset and continued to move on and take my own path,” he said. “It’s definitely a blessing to have a family legacy here, but now I get to chart my own path.”
His grandfather, the late Jim Lindsey, was a Razorback legend as a running back for the 1964 National Championship team that went 11-0. The family patriarch and eventual real estate mogul, then played seven years for the Minnesota Vikings. His older brother, Elmer "B" Lindsey, was also a standout athlete, who signed with the St. Louis Cardinals and played six years in their farm system, before retiring to Forrest City to run the family farm.
Jim Lindsey passed his love of football on to his sons, including Drake’s father, John David, and his uncle, Lyndy, who both played for the Razorbacks. Lyndy's son – and Drake’s cousin -- Jack Lindsey, played quarterback for two years at Arkansas, while his other son, Link, is a triple jumper for the Hogs’ track and field team. Drake’s sister, Loren, is also a member of the Arkansas women’s basketball team.
Lindsey is more of a pro-style quarterback, with stout size and a strong, accurate arm, to fire the ball downfield, whereas Arkansas has been running more of a dual-threat spread-attack offense over recent years.
But now, with Petrino’s offense utilizing more of a pro-style scheme, Lindsey could be the prototype operator, much like Petrino’s earlier pupils at Arkansas, Ryan Mallett and Tyler Wilson.
“I think Arkansas did their due diligence, but I guess they just chose to go a different route,” said Fayetteville head coach Casey Dick, who also played quarterback for the Razorbacks, from 2005-08.
“I think he can go play wherever he wants. He’s a big kid with lots of arm talent. The mental side of him is unreal. But the biggest thing, especially at quarterback, is the level of consistency that he comes out and plays with, week in and week out, and the way he takes care of the football.”
Former Arkansas head coach Houston Nutt, who coached Dick, agrees. He's seen Lindsey play twice this season and will be at War Memorial Stadium Saturday.
"I tease Casey sometimes saying, 'You have a better quarterback playing for you than you were,'" Nutt said. "[Lindsey] could easily play in the SEC. He is almost 6-foot-6 and is looking over everybody, and he is so accurate. You have to give [Minnesota head coach P.J. Fleck] a lot of credit. He looks real good making that early offer."
As of Wednesday afternoon, Lindsey had still not heard anything from the Razorback program, although all of his focus is now on the state title game.
“I’m not really worried about any of those things right now,” he said. “We’ve still got another game to play and that’s all I am thinking about.”
