Grant's career came full circle during his senior year. It has been a long road back for the Razorback since suffering a devastating anterior cruciate ligament tear in his left knee in 2006. A former cornerback, he had made the transition to free safety and started the first nine games of his junior campaign at his new position before injuring his knee at South Carolina.

If tying for the national title in passes defended is any indication, the former track-and-field star certainly was on the right path in his successful return to the gridiron last fall. He didn't show many ill effects from his injury, combining his sprinter's speed with good ball skills to give the Hogs a defender who more than capably filled pressing needs in the Arkansas secondary in 2007.

Grant began his final campaign at his 2006 position, free safety, starting the first two games of the season there. He then shifted to left cornerback vs. Kentucky, taking over for the departed Chris Houston for nine contests, including the Cotton Bowl. When injuries further depleted the depth in the defensive backfield, he started vs. Chattanooga at right cornerback.

He would go on to tie Trey Brown of UCLA and Walter Thurmond III of Oregon for the NCAA title with 23 passes defended. During his first three seasons with the Razorbacks, he had managed 20 defended passes. In addition to sharing that title, his total of 20 pass deflections were the most in college football for the 2007 season.

Grant was a two-sport standout at Stephenson High School. Super Prep selected him to both its All-America and All-Dixie teams. He added Atlanta Journal-Constitution's Super 11 team, Super Southern 100 squad and Class 5A All-State team honors. He also earned All-State accolades from the Georgia Sports Writers Association. Rivals.com included him in its Southeast Elite and Georgia Top 50 squads and ranked him as the 10th-best athlete in the nation. Fox Sports Net and The Insiders.com named him to their All-South first teams.

Grant competed at cornerback as a freshman and sophomore, but moved to safety as a junior and senior. As a senior, he scored two rushing touchdowns, had one punt return for a touchdown of 78 yards, one kickoff return for a score of 97 yards and one interception return for a touchdown. He was selected to play in Georgia's North-South All-Star game.

As a senior, Grant was also named to the USA Today All-USA Boys Track and Field team. He won the Class 5A 100-meter (10.57) and 200-meter dash (21.23) state titles as a junior. He was a member of a state championship 400-meter relay. He defended his 100-meter crown (10.71) as a senior while finishing second (21.44) in the 200-meter dash.

Grant originally signed to attend Georgia, but then enrolled at Arkansas in 2004. He appeared in 11 games, starting vs. Georgia at field cornerback. He produced 29 tackles (24 solos) and two stops for losses while also deflecting one pass. He played behind Houston at right cornerback in 2005, coming up with 22 tackles (13 solos), a sack and a forced fumble. Playing mostly in the sub package, he broke up 10 passes and intercepted three others.

Grant also competed on the 2005 Arkansas track team, earning an SEC and NCAA event title and an All-American honor. At the SEC Indoor Championships he ran the second leg of the winning distance medley relay team (9:46.91). During the outdoor campaign he posted a single-season best and regional qualifying 100-meter time of 10.41 seconds and his best 200-meter performance was 21.30. He handled the opening leg of the 4x100-meter relay team that broke a 20-year school record to win the NCAA Mideast Region with a time of 38.75.

Trying to keep his speed on the field, the coaches felt that the veteran-laden cornerback corps was preventing Grant from getting the playing time he deserved. He shifted to free safety as a junior, starting the first nine games before blowing out his left knee in the South Carolina clash. He went on to record 41 tackles (29 solos). In the Louisiana-Monroe game, he chased down and tackled a ULM punt team member at the Warhawks' 10-yard line after an errant snap on a punt attempt in the first quarter. The play went for a loss of 50 yards and set up a UA touchdown. He also picked off three passes in that game, the most by a Razorback in a contest since 1971.

In 2007, Grant earned second-team All-Southeastern Conference honors. The only game he did not start while playing three different positions was vs. Auburn. He posted a career-high 75 tackles (61 solos) with a stop for a loss and a forced fumble. In addition to his 20 pass deflections, he also had three interceptions.

Positives: Has an athletic frame with adequate muscle definition, but will need to bulk up more if he is to compete as a safety at the next level (frame might not be able to carry more weight without it impacting his timed speed, though) … Breaks on the ball quickly and flashes good closing quickness … Shows good long speed and acceleration on deep routes, but is still learning how to anticipate and mirror the receiver's moves … Shows good agility, quick feet, good balance and sharp acceleration … Generally stays in control in his backpedal, operating at the proper pad level, but needs to do a better job with his plant and drive out of his pedal (must do it with no wasted motion, but he will revert to false stepping) … Can reach and pluck the ball away from the body's framework … Stays low in his pads and has good explosion closing on the ball in the open … Keeps his leg base wide when tackling in space … Showed improvement late in 2007 when trying to read and react to threats when operating in zone coverage … Makes plays on the ball in the air and has good timing in his leaps and when keeping track of the ball in flight … Has an above average short-area burst, but needs to take better angles in pursuit … Can mirror the receiver on underneath routes, but must play tighter on deep routes, as he does allow a big cushion … Gets a good jump on the ball and makes plays in deep zone coverage … Uses his second gear well to recover when a receiver gets behind him … Has good body control elevating for the ball and was quite effective at riding up the receiver or reaching around to break up the pass while playing cornerback in 2007 … Not really physical in press coverage, but has good hand placement to knock the receiver off stride when playing the trail … Has the hip snap to change direction and gears to flow back to the ball when he over-pursues.

Negatives: Has good timed speed, but he tends to play lot of bracket coverage, struggling to maintain focus on the ball as the receivers keep him turned around … Gets too upright and narrow in his stance working in space, lacking that sudden burst in his transition … Does not shy away from contact, but lacks explosion in his initial burst … Tends to be a quarterback watcher and will bite on fakes and play-action … Despite his sprinter's speed, he does not have the extra gear needed to recover when beaten … Takes poor angles when working in space and can be a little slow to break down plays, causing him to miss his assignments … Misses too many tackles working in the open (will take a side rather than square up, as bigger runners can bounce off those tackles) … Lacks proper footwork and technique to be consistent in man coverage and allows too much cushion, which results in a lot of passes caught in front of him … Must be more active and aggressive using his hands in press coverage, as he fails to impede the receiver's route progression … Bit of a waist bender and needs to improve his footwork in transition (false steps), as he gives up too much separation on breaks … Seems to lose focus and intensity when not involved in the play and will throttle down at times … Lacks the upper body strength to be an impact tackler, especially when asked to step into the box, where blockers have had good success in washing him out on running plays, as he tends to shy away from contact in tight areas … Has some minor character issues teams will need to look into … Made a rapid recovery from a serious left knee injury in 2006, but further medical evaluation might be warranted.

Compares To: CORTLAND FINNEGAN-Tennessee … Grant appears to be capable of handling the speed game as a cornerback, but needs to play the press with more aggression. He gets fooled out of his pants on pump fakes and play-action and still has that safety's mentality where he puts more emphasis in attacking the ball in flight rather than playing the receiver man-up. He is too light in the pants and lacks impact behind his hits to be an effective free safety at the next level, but his experience there could earn him playing time in nickel and dime packages. The complete package he certainly is not, but with his speed and leaping ability, he could fill depth in the secondary.

2006: Suffered a left knee anterior cruciate ligament tear in the third quarter vs. South Carolina (11/04), undergoing surgery and missing the team's final five contests vs. Tennessee, Mississippi State, Louisiana State, Florida and Wisconsin.

Campus: 4.48 in the 40-yard dash … 36-inch vertical jump … 9'10" broad jump … 31 ½-inch arm length … 9 1/8-inch hands.

Combine: 4.37 in the 40-yard dash … 1.5 10-yard dash … 2.54 20-yard dash … 4.12 20-yard shuttle … 7.08 three-cone drill … 30 ½-inch vertical jump … 9'8" broad jump … Bench pressed 225 pounds 14 times.

Attended Stephenson (Stone Mountain, Ga.) High School, playing football for Ron Gartrell … Two-sport standout … Super Prep selected him to both its All-America and All-Dixie teams … Added Atlanta Journal-Constitution's Super 11 team, Super Southern 100 squad and Class 5A All-State team honors … Earned All-State accolades from the Georgia Sports Writers Association. Rivals.com included him in its Southeast Elite and Georgia Top 50 squads and ranked him as the 10th-best athlete in the nation … Fox Sports Net and The Insiders.com named him to their All-South first teams … Competed at cornerback as a freshman and sophomore, but moved to safety as a junior and senior … As a senior, he scored two rushing touchdowns, had one punt return for a touchdown of 78 yards, one kickoff return for a score of 97 yards and one interception return for a touchdown … Was selected to play in Georgia's North-South All-Star game … As a senior, Grant was also named to the USA Today All-USA Boys Track and Field team … Won the Class 5A 100-meter (10.57) and 200-meter dash (21.23) state titles as a junior … Member of a state championship 400-meter relay … Defended his 100-meter crown (10.71) as a senior while finishing second (21.44) in the 200-meter dash.

Sociology major, enrolled in the Fulbright College of Arts and Sciences … Son of Victoria Grant … Born 3/30/86 … Resides in Stone Mountain, Georgia.