Arkansas Hires John L. Smith as interim coach
- Thread starter kyallie
- Start date
I find it strange that Arkansas would hire an interim HC rather than making an assistant the interim HC, but John L. Smith is not a bad coach, a little on the quirky side. Gonna be interesting to see how the players respond.
He had success at Idaho and a couple good seasons at Louisville, but was a failure at Michigan State. I think they just took whoever they could get at this late date and will look to hire a real coach next year. A better hire for the Barn than Arkansas.
Well it is a MAAAAAAAJOR step down from Bob Petrino. I'm sure he won't be the coach beyond this year, but then it doesn't make much sense to me that he would take the job on an interim basis.
He baled on Weber St. after a few months. He baled on U.of L...at the halftime of a bowl game!
Weber St. is his Alma Mater.
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Oh, geez.
The Arkansas fans must be having a meltdown over this news - their forums are inaccessible, yet again. :biggrin:
LOL..Strange Hire..Plenty of quality & proven HC's on the Div 11 level I would've hired rather than Smith..
You guys he realize he has worked for Petrino for the last 3 years and is familiar with the players, playbook, and staff. It seems like as good of a move as possible for an interim to me...
If his name had initially popped up, then I'd say this was a good hire.
But after hearing Pete Carroll, Steve Mariucci, Phil Fulmer, etc. being tossed around (however improbable) John L. Smith has gotta be a blow to the fanbase.
He's had success, and they could have done much, much worse, but the hire definitely doesn't worry me.
But after hearing Pete Carroll, Steve Mariucci, Phil Fulmer, etc. being tossed around (however improbable) John L. Smith has gotta be a blow to the fanbase.
He's had success, and they could have done much, much worse, but the hire definitely doesn't worry me.
What a, uhh, bizarre move. Really. I never in a million years would have seen this coming, and for good reason...
So, what will be the pitch that Arky uses for recruiting? Since that most likely means all of the assistants will be gone at the end of the year, how can they effectively recruit? Can a coach that just left the team he was hired by in January be viewed as trustworthy bt recruits and their parents?
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What I'm hearing is that Smith will essentially be a figurehead, handling the bulk of the media duties while the assistant do all the heavy lifting.
that approach might be for the best, as it will allow for a fair amount of continuity; recruiting is gonna be pretty hosed next year, though.
that approach might be for the best, as it will allow for a fair amount of continuity; recruiting is gonna be pretty hosed next year, though.
Why do you say so? How often does a team have the option to hire a former head coach (with a fair record, to boot) that has been on the staff for 3 years and knows the personnel, playbook, and other coaches. I'm sure Smith knows the deal, but I'm sure he's hoping if next year goes well, he may get another shot at HC somewhere. The players are used to him so there shouldn't be the culture shock that hiring someone new usually causes for some players. If Smith had to connection to the program, I'd agree, but I think this is as good of a situation as they could hope for. Who else on the staff should they have named HC if it was Smith?
S/b a true interim, like an asst. coach....they can kiss recruiting bye for this year.
Being that he was named "Interim Head Coach" I'm pretty sure the parents can figure out he's the interim coach.
Recruiting is going to suck with any interim. This decision was made to try to salvage this season, which returns a lot of talent. I'm sure a new HC will be hired long before signed day next year.
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