Interview: Arkansas Class of 2017 DE David Porter Updates Camps and Recruiting

Written by Ryan Wright

Twitter: @HogManInLA

In the recruiting world, anytime one comes across a mix of raw talent and great athleticism, there is time to rejoice and have a small celebration. Diehard high school football fans in the state of Arkansas are well aware of Robinson High School defensive end David Porter and the rest of the recruiting world is about to be as well.

On the field, Porter is a 6’2”, 235 pound, wind-up toy of quickness, strength, and hard hitting in the early stages of honing his abilities into a next level beast. Off the field, Porter is as nice a guy as you may ever come across but that is not what will bring college recruiters to Little Rock throughout the next year. A stat line of 91 tackles, 31 solo, 17 tackles for a loss, 11 sacks, one pass deflection, one fumble recovery returned for a touchdown, and two blocked field goals will, and that is exactly what Porter did to the opposition in just 12 games from his defensive end position during his junior campaign.

Porter already has three reported offers coming in from Kansas State, Louisiana Tech, and University of Louisiana-Monroe. Interest is there and building from top programs across the country. Alabama, Arkansas, Arkansas State, Houston, San Diego State, TCU, Tulsa, Colorado State, and Oklahoma State are looking into Porter but what they may be waiting on before dropping an offer is still anyone’s guess.

In a Recruiting News Guru exclusive interview, I caught up with the rising star covering his junior season, his offseason schedule, and got a recruiting news update.

Interview

David, you jumped on the recruiting scene in a big way in 2015. Were you pleased with the way you played last year?

“I was pleased. I made a lot of improvements, I think I improved a lot.”

What were some of the areas of your game that improved from your sophomore to junior season?

“I think my speed got a lot better. Our defensive coaches put in extra work with different schemes to set us up for success. My speed helped me a lot. Despite my stats, I actually used a lot of raw ability last year. Once I have good technique and I learn different moves, I will be even more successful. Another thing, our coaches did tell me to become more aggressive and I think I did that well.”

What are your offseason goals?

“No. 1 – working hard in the classroom. No. 2 – get my size up. My dad is 6- foot, 8-inches. I’m 16-years-old, I think I’ll get a little bit taller. I have room to grow. I want to get my weight up, I’m kind of small in my opinion.”

What is your target weight for the start of the 2016 season?

“Before my senior year, I want to be at 250 pounds. I think I can get there. Something in the 240 pound range might be more realistic.”

You’re game speed looks really good. What is the best 40-yard dash time you’ve posted?

“I ran a 4.82 last season, but I think I’ve gotten faster. Coach (Brian) Maupin puts us through a lot of training. We can feel ourselves getting stronger during every workout. I know I’ve gotten faster.”

Have you maxed out on bench or squat lately?

“No, but we are supposed to do all of that coming up in a couple of weeks.”

What camps are you going to attend coming up?

“I’m going to the Nike SPARQ Combine and a Rivals camp. I was invited to both. The Nike Regionals, I was invited to attend that as well. I’m going to college camps over the summer with Coach Maupin.”

Which college camps are you going to attend?

“Kansas State will be one of them. I’m assuming Kansas State will be one of the first ones, maybe the Razorback camp. We’re going to Kansas this weekend.”

Which schools have offered you so far?

“Kansas State, Louisiana Tech, and ULM (Louisiana-Monroe).”

Which schools are showing interest in you but have not offered you yet?

“I guess Arkansas but we don’t talk much. Most of the college coaches talk to Coach Maupin. I talk to Kansas State’s Coach (Blake) Seiler (defensive ends coach) on a regular basis. Coach (Billy) Napier at Alabama (wide receivers coach), we talk on Twitter sometimes. As far as talking to coaches, I mostly talk to Seiler at KSU. I think we are building a pretty good player-coach relationship.”

Did you go to any college camps last year?

“No sir. The only big camp I went to was the SPARQ Combine. I did decent last year but I will do better this year.”

What SPARQ score are you shooting for this year?

“I really don’t know… maybe 100 or higher. I just want to do my best.”

What goals have you set for yourself or within the team construct for next season?

“The main goal, and really the only goal, is to win state. We have all the tools we need. I think we have an all-star caliber squad. We are getting players from all over wanting to join the movement. We have Koilan Jackson, Nathan Page, and Hunter Swoboda – I could keep going. Elliot Harris, he’s 6-4, 280 pounds, and is only in the ninth grade. He’ll be a 10th grader next season. He played varsity last season and did well. He’s going to be really good.”

David, good luck with your upcoming camps and visits.

“Thank you.”

Photo credit: Porter family; David Porter (left) at Alabama.

Photo credit: Porter family; David Porter after an offseason Robinson workout.