Are Razorbacks Already Having Second Thoughts After Hiring Silverfield?

New era of Arkansas football is off to a horrid start, and it could prove costly during offseason

Jul 23, 2026; Tampa, FL, USA; Arkansas Razorbacks head coach Ryan Silverfield speaks to the press during SEC Football Kickoff Media Day at the Tampa Marriott. Mandatory Credit: Nathan Ray Seebeck-Imagn Images | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. — The Ryan Silverfield era is off to possibly the worst start imaginable.

After a lackluster win against North Alabama, the Arkansas Razorbacks needed to at least be competitive against Utah. Instead, the team looked arguably worse, being absolutely decimated on the road.

Sep 12, 2026; Salt Lake City, Utah, USA; Arkansas Razorbacks wide receiver Monte Harrison (11) is tripped up by Utah Utes safety Rabbit Evans (1) during the first quarter at Rice-Eccles Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Rob Gray-Imagn Images | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

While Utah is a team looking to win their conference and make the playoffs, the way Arkansas lost was embarrassing. There were no positives to take away from the game, and the team is better off burning the tape.

While it is still early in the season, it may be evident that Arkansas made the wrong hire in Silverfield.

He is not a horrible coach; in fact, he has had success, at the Group of Six level with Mempis. The SEC is an entirely different animal, though, and the best way to retool against teams with a better recruiting system is to use the transfer portal.

Unfortunately, Silverfield didn't bring in any big-name players. And that is not entirely his own fault; rather, Memphis just did not have any star players he could bring with him.

This makes you wonder, though: if the transfer portal is key to winning, why didn't the athletic department dump all its money on a different coach?

Arkansas Razorbacks head coach Ryan Silverfield reacts to a play against the Utah Utes during the second quarter at Rice-Eccles Stadium. | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

Better options existed, most notably Eric Morris. He is now at Oklahoma State, where they just upset Oregon in Stillwater.

Morris isn't much better at playcalling than Silverfield, but he brought more talent with him. He has Heisman candidate Drew Mestemaker at quarterback, who is a projected first-round pick, along with a ton of the nation's best receivers.

While they would not be a top team in the SEC, they could at least scrape together a winning season. That is something that Arkansas fans have been missing out on for years now. That alone would have made Morris a much more suitable hire.

Silverfield still has the remainder of the season and offseason to prove he is fit to be the head coach. However, there is not much room for error and needs to win at least two more games this season to cover up for such a frustrating start to the season.

That bar is extremely low, but that is the state of this program right now. Even their game against Tulsa will be tough, given how the team has been playing through the first couple of weeks.

Without wins — and the funs to go along with that — it will be hard for him to win once the transfer portal opens on Jan. 2, 2027. If Silverfield can't even do that, Razorback fans can expect another new face at head coach sooner rather than later.

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