Razorbacks Open To Possible Monk Return

Arkansas coach John Pelphrey and former Razorbacks wide receiver and brief basketball player Marcus Monk have spoken about Monk joining the basketball team in January.

Pelphrey said any speculation about Monk actually becoming a member of the team was “preliminary.”

“There’s nothing as of right now,” Pelphrey said after Friday night’s Red-White game. “It could be a possibility. It’s being investigated.”

Monk could be eligible to join the team because the NCAA gives athletes five years to exhaust four years of eligibility in any sport. Monk, a 6-foot-6 Lepanto native, played one season of basketball in addition to his four years of football. He scored 10 points in 10 basketball games with the Razorbacks as a freshman in the 2004-05 season.

Pelphrey mentioned that Monk isn’t enrolled in classes, and he wondered how that would affect his ability to get eligible. He also vouched for Monk’s character.

“I’m a big Marcus Monk fan,” Pelphrey said. “I don’t know anything about him and basketball. I’ve never even seen him bounce a ball. But I know how hard he worked last year to get back in football from his injury, and I’ve had a chance to be around him on a number of occasions.”

Monk, who caught 27 touchdown passes throughout a successful career that was cut short last year by a knee injury, was drafted by the Chicago Bears in the seventh round of this year’s NFL Draft. The Bears released him before the start of the regular season, and Monk was then picked up by the New York Giants.

The Giants released him on Sept. 8.