Loyal to the soil: NFL Draft prospect Quincy Rhodes Jr. talks drive to play for Arkansas
· Yahoo Sports
LITTLE ROCK, Ark. (KLRT) - Senior defensive end Quincy Rhodes Jr. is getting noticed now after a breakout year in 2025, which saw him record 15.5 tackles for loss and 8 sacks with the Razorbacks. He's showing up on early mock drafts as a first-round pick.
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But that's not a surprise for those who know Quincy, or QJ, the best, like his dad.
"He was about five months old, and he was crawling. And I looked at him, and I noticed he was the first baby that I saw the muscles in his back,” he said. “And then he had extremely big thighs. So I was like, ‘Oh, he's going to be an NFL player.’"
In fact, the Razorback had the opportunity to go pro last year, but decided against it.
Some people may have scratched their heads at that decision, but for Quincy, it was a no-brainer.
"I feel like it's a lot of things I needed to grow, like, mentally, physically before I took them that, the next step of, you know, proceeding on my career and, you know, being a professional football player and then let alone, I wanted to finish my degree,” Quincy Rhodes Jr. said “You know, any Arkansas kid that's, you know, that's a dream of any kid like to go play for the home, for a home team. You know, I'm here now, so why not take advantage of it."
That love for his state bleeds through in everything he does. It was even on display three years ago when a tornado devastated his hometown.
Quincy was out there the very next day, a cast on his arm, doing everything he could to help his community.
"He wanted to go to help people. And because his father was like, no, you stay here. And it was more so for his safety,” Quincy Rhodes Sr. said. “But in defiance of me, he did what was right. So when he does things like that, it reminds me that I did raise him right."
Before the lights and the crowds at Razorback Stadium, there was Quincy’s father, the unwavering force who challenged him to be his best every single day, refusing to let him settle.
"Being from North Little Rock, I never seen myself, you know, here,” Rhodes Jr. said. “My dad's always believed in me. And I would tell my dad my vision. And when I doubt myself, he would kind of get, you know, mad at me because, you know, I'm saying, like, he asked me and he told me like it. This is what I want; I gotta learn. I believe in myself."
So when Quincy takes the field this fall, the ultimate goal is to win, not just for himself or the team, but for the state that's been at the heart of his football journey.
"I want to be the first person, you know, from North Little Rock to show other people if there if there's a will, there's a way," Rhodes Jr. said.
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