BENTONVILLE -- Donte Jones had a change of heart, and an opportunity to play college football closer to home soon followed.

The senior cornerback became one of four Bentonville High players to sign their letters of intent, and Jones signed with the University of Central Arkansas during Wednesday's ceremony in Tiger Arena.

"It feels good because I'm ready to get into it," Jones said. "I'm ready to do it for UCA and start college football, where it counts."

Jones, an all-conference performer who recorded 73 tackles and 1 interception for the Tigers, had originally made a verbal commitment during the season to play at Tennessee-Martin. He said he started to have second thoughts, and he eventually told those coaches in December he didn't want to play there.

UCA, without realizing what Jones had done, called him later that day and gave him the offer he couldn't refuse.

"I realized I wanted to be a little bit closer to home," Jones said. "The call from UCA made me super excited because my dad and I thought we would end up DII at Pittsburg State, which isn't bad, or Missouri Western, which isn't bad either. It shocked me that UCA called me."

Two other Bentonville players also signed with in-state schools as quarterback Easton Hughes chose Arkansas Tech while receiver Harrison Campbell picked Hendrix College. A fourth Tiger, Brendan Wrona, signed his letter of intent with McKendree University in Lebanon, Ill.

Hughes, an all-conference selection, threw for almost 2,000 yards and 17 touchdowns in his only season as the Tigers' starting quarterback and signed with Tech after his verbal commitment a few days ago.

"I'm finally for sure getting to move on to the next stage," Hughes said. "The signing officializes that, and it feels good to get to this point.

"I like the location. I met some of the players and the coaches, and they are easy to get along with. I like the facilities, and I went through some of the offensive scheme. It was pretty understandable for me."

Campbell was Bentonville's leading receiver last fall with 53 receptions for 755 yards and five touchdowns. He also had two rushing touchdowns, as well as a touchdown on a kickoff return and one on a punt return.

He said two things stood out to him about Hendrix -- the education he can receive there, and the ability to contribute to the Warriors' potent offensive attack.

"It's going to be a great opportunity for me," Campbell said. "There's going to be a lot of passing and a lot of scoring points, so it will give me the opportunity to play a lot.

"It's different than any college I've been to. They envision me getting the ball a lot and scoring a lot. It's going to be a lot of fun and they expect me to playing a lot during the first year. It's a lot of short routes and screen balls, which is something I'm pretty good at, so it will be really fun."

Wrona was an all-state selection on the defensive line, where he recorded 45 tackles, five quarterback sacks and two tackles for loss. That was done while playing nose guard in Bentonville's 3-4 defensive scheme, but he will have to make the transition to defensive tackle with the 4-3 alignment McKendree uses.

He actually signed as a dual-sport athlete at McKendree. He is also on Bentonville's cheerleading squad and will be headed to Orlando, Fla., for competition there.

"It's crazy for all this to finally come through," Wrona said. "It's a dream come true. It's really exciting, but nerve-wracking at the same time.

"Thankfully, I like cold weather. I visited a couple of schools that were closer, but I really wanted to get out of Arkansas and start something new and got that opportunity. Hopefully, I can put on a few pounds where I can play and not redshirt the first year, but they have high hopes for me."
