FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. — The Arkansas Razorbacks continued their recruiting momentum Sunday night with a commitment from 3-star safety Keivay Foster, who announced his decision on X.
Foster entered the weekend without an offer from Arkansas but impressed the coaching staff enough to earn one. He ultimately chose the Razorbacks over offers from Missouri, Mississippi State, Troy, and North Alabama.
Special teams coordinator Scott Fountain, who recruits Alabama and other southeastern states, served as Foster’s primary recruiter.
Standing at 6-foot-4 and weighing 182 pounds, safety Keivay Foster is currently ranked No. 627 overall, No. 53 at his position, and No. 25 in the state of Alabama, according to 247Sports.
Arkansas is aiming to bolster its pass defense this fall under new defensive backs coach Nick Perry, a former Alabama safety. Last season, the Razorbacks’ secondary struggled, ranking No. 108 nationally while allowing just over 242 passing yards per game. The defense as a whole finished No. 73 in total yardage allowed (376 yards per game) and No. 66 in scoring defense, giving up 25 points per contest.
Perry will have a retooled group to work with, featuring at least 15 scholarship defensive backs—many of whom arrived via the transfer portal during the offseason. Among the notable additions are Stanford cornerback Julian Neal, Caleb Wooden (Auburn), Quentavius Scandrett (Eastern Michigan), Keshawn Davilla (the top-ranked JUCO defensive back), Shakur Smalls (Maine), Kani Walker (Oklahoma), and Jordan Young (Cincinnati).
The only returning defensive backs from last season are sophomore Selman Bridges, senior Larry Worth, redshirt juniors Jaheim Singletary and Miguel Mitchell, and sophomore Ahkhari Johnson.
Joining the secondary this year are two true freshmen—both 3-star prospects—Taijh Overton from Mobile, Alabama, and Nigel Pringle from Houston, Texas.
Head coach Sam Pittman acknowledged that Arkansas lost a significant amount of talent due to both graduation and transfer departures. Among the most notable losses was former freshman All-SEC defender Jaylon Braxton, who transferred to Ole Miss. Additionally, the Metcalf brothers—TJ and Tevis—left for Michigan after productive seasons in the Razorbacks’ secondary.
“When you have to think about which one of those guys—if they’re not starting at corner—you look at the board and think, ‘Man, do we need to be two-deep?’ And that’s true,” Pittman said. “But [not] if my third-best corner is also my backup boundary safety. So, we brought in body types specifically for corner, and others who can flex between corner, boundary safety, and nickel. The secondary was depleted, and we had to get it right—both in who chose us and who we chose.”
With the 2025 roster now deeper and more balanced, Arkansas appears to have addressed its secondary concerns. Looking ahead, the Razorbacks are also building a strong foundation in the 2026 class.
Among their commitments is two-time MaxPreps All-American and 3-star defensive back Tay Lockett, who has been pledged since August 2023. He’s joined by 3-star Fayetteville native Kyndrick Williams, standout Oklahoma 3-star Adam Auston, 3-star Jalon Campbell, and safety Keivay Foster.
Arkansas Razorbacks 2026 Commits
OL: Bryce Gilmore, Tucker Young, Ashley Walker
DL: Colton Yarbrough, Ari Slocum, Carnell Jackson, Cameron McGee
QB: Jayvon Gilmore
WR: Dequane Prevo, Blair Irvin III, Robert Haynes
TE: Jaivion Martin, Kade Bush
DB: Tay Lockett, Jalon Copeland, Kyndrick Williams, Adam Auston
S: Keivay Foster
LB: Daylen Green
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