Hogs' interim coach Bobby Petrino further cleans house with Arkansas coaching staff

FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. — The football coaching carousel is turning mightily, internally, at the University Arkansas this week.

Bobby Petrino, the team's second-year offensive coordinator prior to being named interim coach on Sunday to coincide with the firing of six-year head coach Sam Pittman, has already made significant moves with his newly inherited coaching staff.

On Monday morning, a report from CBS Sports Matt Zenitz indicated Petrino was terminating third-year defensive coordinator Travis Williams along with two other assistant coaches.

A source confirmed with us the other two departing assistants are third-year co-defensive coordinator Marcus Woodson (also the team's safeties coach) and fourth-year defensive line coach Deke Adams.

Petrino and Yurachek are set to host a joint press conference at noon today, during which more will likely be learned about the recent staff shake-up.

All of this is the fallout from a current Arkansas three-game losing streak during which the defense has been lethargic, porous, anemic, flaccid, and utterly helpless in terms of resistance.

Arkansas (2-3, 0-1 SEC) was thoroughly dominated defensively by the offenses of its last three opponents (Notre Dame, Memphis, and Ole Miss) to the tune of yielding a collective 1,607 scrimmage yards (that's 535.7 yards per contest) and 129 points (that's 43.0 points per outing).

The trio of defensive coaches helped lead a respectable Hogs' run defense in prior seasons, but it was often a unit that was susceptible to giving up big plays in the passing game.

In 2025, the defense has consistently been ripped apart both on the ground and through the air, and the unit weaknesses were glaring at all three levels (line, linebackers, secondary).

Williams enjoyed relative success in his first two seasons as the Razorbacks' defensive coordinator, both times being recognized with nominations for the prestigious Broyles Award that is presented to college football's most outstanding assistant coach.

He was key to Arkansas' recruiting, and at one point last year when there was speculation that Pittman might be fired, some support surfaced for Williams as a potential candidate to take over as interim head coach.

In order in less than 24 hours, Yurachek parted ways with Pittman (32-34 overall at Arkansas, including 14-29 in SEC games) while naming Petrino his interim successor with Petrino following up with the three aforementioned firings.

“I want to thank Coach Pittman for his service and dedication to the University of Arkansas throughout his time as head coach,” Yurachek said via a press release on Sunday. “From Day 1, you could tell how much this opportunity meant to him. At this time, however, I feel a change is necessary to put our student-athletes and program in the best position to be successful.

"The goal for our football program is to be highly competitive within the Southeastern Conference and compete for a national championship. As we move forward in the process of finding our next head coach, I am certain we will be able to provide the necessary resources to our staff and team to reach our goals. We will begin a national search for our next head coach immediately and that search will include Coach Petrino, who has expressed his desire to be a candidate for the full-time job.”

Petrino, 64, had wild success as Arkansas' head coach in four seasons (2008-11) while authoring a 34-17 record, which included back-to-back 10-or-more-win seasons (2010 and 2011) as well as the schools only BCS-era bowl appearance (2010).

He's not only the interim coach for the Hogs' final seven games of 2025, but he's a candidate for the permanent job, a hiring process that athletics director Hunter Yurachek said on Sunday will include a national search for the next hire.

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