Former Razorbacks WR great still impacting football in Arkansas
LITTLE ROCK, Ark. (BVM) — It’s been more than two decades since “Stoerner to Lucas” sent waves across the state of Arkansas. Saturday, Nov. 13, 1999, was the day the Arkansas Razorbacks redeemed themselves against the defending national champion Tennessee Volunteers. Wide receiver Anthony Lucas reeled in the go-ahead touchdown pass from quarterback Clint Stoerner as the senior connection helped finish off the No. 3 team in the country, 28-24.
Fans still remember that game and the greatness of Lucas’ college career. In 1998, he became the program’s first player to record a 1,000-yard receiving season (1,004). A five-year member of the Razorbacks (1995-99) – his true sophomore season ended after just one game due to injury – Anthony Lucas graduated with 137 receptions for 2,879 yards and 23 touchdowns.
Entering the 2000 NFL Draft with first-team All-SEC honors and an appearance on the AP All-America third-team, Lucas was poised for a promising pro career. Selected 114th overall in the fourth round by the Green Bay Packers it appeared Brett Favre, three-time league MVP, would be his quarterback for the foreseeable future.
His rookie campaign in the NFL never got off the ground though. Prior to leaving Arkansas, Lucas had already gone through three arthroscopic surgeries on his right knee and struggled to run at their post-draft minicamp. He never played a single down for Green Bay. Lucas underwent ACL surgery prior to his release from the Packers in Aug. 2001.
Looking for a new home in the NFL, Lucas found himself back on the same team as Stoerner with Dallas. The Cowboys immediately claimed his rights off waivers. They were looking at possibly adding the 6-foot-3 receiver to their 53-man roster mid-season, but another setback would strike. Lucas had suffered a broken right kneecap.
Working his hardest in the off-season to get back on the gridiron and hopeful to see his first real NFL action in 2002, his right knee had failed him once again during training camp – another fractured patella. Again, his season lost. But this time, the injury was career-ending.
Dallas placed the 25-year-old wide receiver on injured reserve that season, however Anthony Lucas never returned to the football field as a player. After three seasons trying to make it in the NFL, his right knee just wouldn’t allow for him to play again competitively.
Lucas never logged any game stats in the NFL, but he didn’t completely walk away from the game that had thrust him into the national spotlight in Fayetteville, Ark. in the late 1990s. A decade after his last crack at the pros, he reunited with football in Little Rock, Ark.
In the fall of 2012, Lucas joined Pulaski Academy as their wide receivers coach and has remained with the high school varsity program ever since. He has been part of five state champion Bruins teams in 5A, including a four-peat run from 2014-17 and their most recent title this past season.
While his abilities as a player were unable to be showcased at the highest level, Lucas enjoys teaching the next generation of athletes at his position and watching them flourish.
Pulaski Academy’s receivers weren’t born when their coach was giving defensive coordinators headaches at the Division I level, but they’re now aware more than ever of his legacy as an athlete. Anthony Lucas still holds the Razorbacks’ program record for most 100-yard receiving games (11) and the SEC record for most yards per reception (21) in a career. In March, his name was added to the list of greats inducted to the Arkansas Sports Hall of Fame.
Still young in his coaching career, maybe Lucas moves up the ranks and finds himself in the Arkansas High School Coaches Association Hall of Fame some day. Until then, he’s going to need to start using his other hand for future state championship rings.
