Back by no demand. Another coach candidate list, this time it is Arkansas. If you are curious to see my other posts, I will put a link down below to a post that has all of my coach candidate links uploaded.
https://fanspo.com/nfl/s/college_football/p/ehkeG_1Wbo6Yb-/coach-candidate-tier-list-links
For anyone unaware of my coach candidate lists, they are long so it will be time consuming if you want to read all of it. But, basically, I take a consensus of what the schools status is (Resources, playing history, coaches and schemes, etc.), then I look at what they are looking for. I then make my list of coaches I think will fit the school then look at articles and beat writers to see who they are saying. I then put all of this together and my own little tier. The highest one is not always the one I think will take the job, but is either the biggest or most polarizing name on the list. If anyone would like for me to make a list of who each school will hire as the next head coach, leave it in the comments section.
Unlike any of the other schools currently open, Arkansas has the money and resources and is in one of the best conferences. The issue: They are in the SEC and is stuck playing teams like LSU, Texas, and Oklahoma every year and sprinkle in Tennessee, Alabama, Georgia, Ole Miss, South Carolina, and Missouri and the fans start having panic attacks before the Spring Game. They can probably poach any team they want, but the issue is who wants to work this hard to make it to the CFP? I have a couple of names that could take this tall order and I would like to know your thoughts below.
Give Him A Second Shot
Bobby Petrino, former Arkansas HC (2008-11) and current Interim (2025 season only)
Most of y'all who are reading this may not been alive during this time. I have a very vague memory of the final few months especially since his firing was going on around Easter and you had a bad case of the stomach bug so you have to sit around and listen to the adults talk about the situation instead of playing outside. I have since educated myself of this situation that occurred and I do not recommend anyone to look it up, but it involves a motorcycle and a former college volleyball player and we will leave it at that. But... He has since came back and rebuilt his reputation and coached some kid that later became the Heisman winner in his Sophomore year and is now some player who has won two MVP's. Oh, his name is Lamar Jackson. He later got fired at Louisville after one bad year and has somehow found his way back in Fayetteville last year as the OC. Everyone knew he would eventually become the interim and get another shot at redemption. Now, he is the interim. Are they going to remove the interim tag? This next seven games will tell us yes, no, or we already got a guy in mind.
Take Me Home, Fayetteville Roads
Gus Malzahn, Florida State (OC; 2025-?)
The former Auburn and UCF coach and Arkansas alum would be a great hire and allegedly had the job wrapped around his finger years ago. Auburn then beat Alabama and went on to the SEC Championship Game and the AD decided to give him a huge contract extension to keep him put. The AD later got fired in the 2018-19 time frame and in 2020, they fired Malzahn for what was at that time the largest buyout in NCAA history. It has since been beat out by Jimbo Fisher's buyout by nearly $30 million. Malzahn is probably one of the best coaches out there and always has Bama's number one way or another. Just expect to lose to a team you shouldn't at least twice a season.
Rhett Lashlee, SMU (2022-?)
Arkansas alum and Malzahn protege. Ever since the rumors of Arkansas wanting Pittman out the door, it feels like Lashlee's name has been attached ever since. So, since day one basically. Hiring Lashlee is like hiring a younger Malzahn. An alum with a guaranteed top ten offense who will give you an average of eight wins a season and will win big games. But, expect to lose games you never thought losing at least once or twice a season and then thinking he ran out of gas, he gives you a season you will never forget. After me saying this about both of them, Malzahn and Lashlee are still the first and second guys I will call if I was the AD.
Current Head Coaches Who Could Fit Right In
Jon Sumrall, Tulane (2024-?)
I am going to keep adding him on my lists, but I do not think he will take any of these jobs unless his preferred job does not open up. He may interview, but it is only to draw attention so he can either get a raise or that big blue school can offer him double digits. Wherever Sumrall goes, I will guarantee instant success. He's a winner, the guys adapt to what he brings to the team.
Ryan Silverfield, Memphis (2020-?)
The man who basically gave Pittman the boot. The longtime Memphis head coach who replaced Mike Norvell has had success as of late after struggling to get the team back on track after COVID. He also seems to be some kind of QB whisperer with Seth Henigan and Brendan Lewis. This might be a good hire, just not sure if he would want to take the leap to go from American to SEC.
Tyson Helton, Western Kentucky (2019-?)
From one longtime G5 coach to another. Tyson Helton has been at WKU longer than the day Sam Pittman was announced the head coach. In fact, Chad Morris' final game as the head coach at Arkansas was to the rookie coach Helton in a 45-19 beating with former Arkansas QB Ty Storey as the Hilltoppers starting QB (I don't know how I know or remember all of these stories, but they are all packed in my head ready to come out). He is also the brother of former USC head coach Clay Helton. If Tyson takes over as the head coach, he has popularized the now traditional grad transfer QB hitting success with Bailey Zappe and continuing the trend with Austin Reed, TJ Finley, Caden Veltkamp, and now Maverick McIvor. Expect Helton to recruit every talent but just keep cycling through grad transfer QB's from Texas State or Tulsa every year.
Charles Huff, Southern Miss (2025-?)
Imagine Arkansas hiring the guy that recruited and coached Saquon Barkley and Najee Harris? One of the most successful recruiters ever decided to leave Alabama as the running backs coach to become the Marshall head coach. He did so well that they didn't renew his contract and took a pay cut to coach Southern Miss and has a team who finished 1-11 last year 4-2 now. Honestly, I don't see him taking the Arkansas job. Really, I think he had his eyes set on replacing Mike Locksley as the Maryland head coach. Maryland is on track to go on a 8-4 run with a true freshman QB. Now, I think Huff is all set for the Virginia Tech job if he chooses to pursue.
Jeff Traylor, UTSA (2020-?)
Nobody is mentioning his name, but I guess I will. One of the small few coaches who has made a name for himself after leaving Chad Morris' Arkansas. He took the head coach job at UTSA which looked like a bottom tier job at that time and made them a consistent conference powerhouse. They recently moved from Conference USA to American and have not yet picked up enough steam like they did in his first three seasons. Outside of his two years at Arkansas, he has only been a coach in the state of Texas and would be extremely hard for him to recruit and adapt so quickly.
Has Beens Wanting A Second Chance
Jimbo Fisher, Texas A&M (2018-23)
A National Championship coach, coached a Heisman winner, one of the best recruiters, had one of the best recruiting classes two or three years in the last ten, and the two coaches he primarily worked for were Bobby Bowden and Nick Saban. This sounds like a resume giving to a team for the Texas or Ohio State job, but it's for Arkansas. Why? I don't really know, but you can count on Jimbo having the best team ever just to go 9-4 every year. If it wasn't for his age and his lack of winning in recent years, I would give him the job easily. Now, it's kinda a "why would you hire this guy?" scenario.
Dan Mullen, UNLV (2025-?)
Former Mississippi State and Florida head coach who is well known for his QB development. His fingerprints are still evident with him coaching Dak Prescott and Anthony Richardson who are still in the league. He turned Kyle Trask to a Heisman hopeful. He also coached Tim Tebow, Cam Newton, and Alex Smith when he was an assistant for Urban Meyer. He can give you a top 10 QB, he is just inconsistent at winning.
Jon Gruden, Las Vegas Raiders (2018-21)
I got a feeling everyone knows who this guy is. Super Bowl winning head coach known for his high flying offense and is now a podcaster for Barstool Sports that everyone will recognize from his viral Jaxson Dart snap count clip. He wants to get back into coaching and has apparently said in a 2022 clip that he wants to go back to Arkansas to coach. For the record, I have not found any evidence of him coaching a team in the state of Arkansas, so I don't know if the context was heavily edited out. I would love to see Gruden back, but why Arkansas?
This is the end of my coach candidate list. I hope you enjoyed this one! Make sure to read my other ones. Also, leave a comment below your thoughts on my list and who you think may take the job. I am preparing to make a Kent State coaching candidate list, but it is 10x harder than any of the other ones I made so far.