Three-star Little Rock (Ark.) Parkview tight end Marc Winston says he’s got a leader, trimmed his list to four and scheduled his first official visit.

“Things are starting to come together,” he said. “I’ve set one official visit so far. That’s to Alabama on Jan. 23 through the 25th. I have three others I’m working on – Arkansas, Tennessee and Stanford. I just don’t have the dates for those yet, but I’ll definitely be visiting them.”

And who holds the upper hand at this point?

“Arkansas would be No. 1, then Tennessee No. 2, Alabama No. 3 and Stanford No. 4,” he said. “I’ve got Arkansas first because of the interest level they’ve shown me since day one. They were one of the first schools to offer early, and they’ve stuck with me. It’s also close to home and my family (for which his father, Billy, and his uncle played for the Razorbacks).

“I was watching their game just last night (the 71-63 overtime thriller against Kentucky). They had me on the edge of my seat all night. That was a wild game. I like the way they showed a lot of heart and kept finding ways to stay in the game until they finally won it.”

The Hogs’ SEC rivals also have pluses in their favor, Winston noted.

“Tennessee was showing me where they need a tight end pretty bad,” he said. “Their main guy is a converted lineman. As of last week, I don’t think they had completed a pass to a tight end all season, so they’ve got an opportunity for someone to come in and get a lot of playing time there.

“They haven’t given me an official offer yet, but coach Caldwell just got some more film and said he was pushing coach Fulmer pretty hard to offer me a scholarship. He said they want me to come take an official visit, and everything would work out fine.”

And what about the Crimson Tide?

“The main thing I like about them is the tradition and the winning atmosphere,” he said. “That’s just one of the places you always think about when you’re talking about college football. I know they like to use their tight ends a lot. I like my recruiting coach a lot, too, Sparky Woods. He seems like a real nice guy.”

Stanford remains in the picture due to its “West Coast offense and the opportunity to get a great education,” Winston said. “That would be a pretty good combination for my future.”

Winston (6-7, 235, 4.7) has caught 25 passes and scored one touchdown through nine games this season. He’s also played full-time at defensive end, where he’s recorded 70 tackles and six sacks.

He’s rated the No. 22 tight end in the nation by Rivals.com and the No. 6 player overall in Arkansas.

Academically, he maintains a 3.6 GPA and has scored a 26 on the ACT.