FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. — Quincy Rhodes Jr. sat off to the side in the press conference area of the Broyles Center inside Razorback Stadium on Dec. 4, 2025, and watched head coach Ryan Silverfield's first news conference as the head coach at Arkansas.It was then announced that Rhodes, alongside quarterback KJ Jackson, were among the first returnees for Silverfield as he began the arduous process of building his first Razorback squad. It's difficult to overstate how big it was for Silverfield to retain Rhodes, who was one of few bright spots on a spectacularly poor Arkansas defense in 2025.The North Little Rock native could've declared for the NFL Draft after a 2025 campaign that saw him rack up 43 total tackles, eight sacks , 15.5 tackles for loss and a forced fumble. Arkansas DL Quincy Rhodes (#97) doing this at 6'6 275 lbs is ridiculous pic.twitter.com/IFYOWvVfzW— Steve Letizia (@StephenLetizia) November 7, 2025But the 6-foot-6, 276-pound defensive lineman opted to stick it out for one more season in Fayetteville, where he should be one of the leaders on Ron Roberts' defense. "When you go to the next level, it's a man's game," Rhodes recently told Courtney Mims of FOX16. "It's not like how it is in basketball or in MLB [where] you can declare and then take your name out [of the draft]. Once you declare for the draft in the NFL... once you're there, you're there. I don't want to get there and then have to come back home because I moved prematurely. "I just felt like there were a lot of things I needed to grow mentally and physically on before I took that next step of pursuing my career of being a professional football player." So great to get to chat to North Little Rock's own Quincy Rhodes Jr. today about why he came… pic.twitter.com/o1ule7UOLG— Courtney Mims (@MimsCourtney) July 17, 2026"I just felt like there were a lot of things I needed to grow mentally and physically on before I took that next step of pursuing my career of being a professional football player. I wanted to finish my degree. School's cool and all, I just wanted to make sure that before I went to the league to get my degree so once football's over, I can have something to fall back on." Rhodes, 21, is majoring in Agricultural Leadership but could very well find himself holding a jersey during the 2027 NFL Draft before he earns his UA diploma.Rhodes' Draft StockBarring a catastrophic injury, Rhodes will find his way into the NFL next season, and one more year with the Razorbacks — especially one under the tutelage of Silverfield and Roberts. That will give him the opportunity to not just score extra experience, but put his talents on display while also shooting up draft boards. Speaking of draft boards, Rhodes is being considered a potential first round selection next spring, and has been mocked as high as No. 9 overall to the New Orleans Saints, according to the mock draft database. However, he is slotted around the low-20s with the general consensus having him going at No. 28 to the Seahawks.If he is able to piece together another double-digit tackle for loss total and become a more consistent pass rusher, then teams near the top of the first round are suredly going to call.Sign up to our free newsletter, and follow us on Facebook, X (Twitter) for the latest news.Add us as a preferred source on GoogleFollow