FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. - Both Carlon Jones and David Oke said Tuesday that Arkansas felt like home, but both defensive lineman had very different paths to ending up on the Razorbacks' 2026 roster.
Oke transferred to Arkansas ahead of the 2025 season from Abilene Christian and enters his fifth season of college football this year. The Lagos, Nigeria, native redshirted last year but is expected to take on a bigger role this season.
"I really love Arkansas as a whole," Oke said Tuesday. "This state is very loving. My first time visiting here was unbelievable.I told myself when I was going to transfer [that] I wanted to look for something similar to where I was, but better competition. After the rough year I had, I really honed in on the people around me.
"They [were] really telling me, choose where your heart is. I was telling myself, reach over my shoulder, let's come back. By the grace of God, I'm able to come back for another year and do what I want to do."
Oke said he is a 'way better' player than he was a year ago and loves the new defensive staff.
Jones, who transferred to Arkansas from USC, had a completely different route to Arkansas, but the USC transfer ended up committing for the same reason that Oke decided to come back.
"I'm originally from the South, so it wasn't very hard of a transition for me," said Jones, a native of Bay City, Texas. "Living in LA was a bit of a culture shock, because I'm a small-town kid from Bay City. It was more my speed coming down to Fayetteville, slower pace so I could think. It was a pretty good adjustment.
Jones immediately began receiving attention from UA when he entered the portal, and it didn't take much for the 6-2, 327-pound DL to decide that Arkansas was his new home.
"My parents were just telling me, we have to go visit Arkansas. They have a lot of interest in you," Jones said. "First day I got here, they worked wonders. I was like, this feels like home, feels like family. It was a good family environment for me. I feel like I can develop here and perform here."
On the field, Oke and Jones could both be major puzzle pieces to an Arkansas defensive line that desperately needs to improve from its 2025 interation.
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This article was originally published on www.si.com/college/arkansas as Carlon Jones, David Oke Had Different Paths To Same End Result at Arkansas .
