Arkansas DE Trey Flowers Announces He Will Return for Senior Season

Thanks to defensive end Trey Flowers, 2014 is already looking up for the Arkansas Razorbacks.

Speaking at a press conference on Monday afternoon, the junior pass-rusher decided to return to school for his senior season, via Sportinglifearkansas.com:

"

Arkansas defensive end Trey Flowers announced Monday he was returning to the Razorbacks for his senior season after considering early entry into the NFL Draft.

“I have made the decision to stay at Arkansas for my senior season,” Flowers said. “Coach Bielema was very supportive throughout the process and helped me and my family navigate this decision. I still have goals on and off the field I want to accomplish at Arkansas, beginning with graduating, and want to continue pursuing those. On the field, I am excited about the program being built and wanted to help the Razorbacks back in 2014. Even though my draft grade was good, I believe another year with Coach Bielema will help improve my draft status. I am looking forward to another season at Arkansas, where we have support from our administration, some of the best fans in the nation and a bright future for the football program.”

"

That’s great news for an Arkansas football program trying to regroup from a disappointing 2013 campaign. One that saw the team follow up a 3-0 start by losing each of its final nine games.

But believe it or not, expectations are higher for the Razorbacks in 2014.

Flowers’ presence on defense is surely a large factor in that.

In 11 games this past season, the Huntsville, Ala., native recorded 44 tackles (13.5 for loss), 5.0 sacks, forced three fumbles and intercepted a pass. That came a year after Flowers broke onto the scene in 2012 with 6.0 sacks and 13.0 tackles for loss.

All in all, Flowers was a leader on this team and will be looked on to anchor the Arkansas defensive line with seniors Chris Smith (8.5 sacks) and Robert Thomas (3.5 sacks) set to graduate.

All stats and rankings used in this article are courtesy of CFBstats.com.

For complete coverage and everything college football, you can reach Sebastian on Facebook, on Twitter and via email at [e-mail].