Silverfield Not Necessarily Opposed To In-Season Staff Changes; Says Cramsey Has Play-Calling Autonomy

Silverfield says OC has ability to put Arkansas 'in the right situation'

Arkansas Razorbacks coach Ryan Silverfield during the first half against Missouri. | Nilsen Roman, Hogs On SI Images

FAYETTEVILLE — Arkansas head coach Ryan Silverfield was asked Monday about his thoughts on in-season staff changes amidst a rash of them being made across college football, including the SEC.

Oklahoma offensive coordinator Ben Arbuckle was the latest casualty, as he was fired on Monday amidst OU's offensive struggles.

"I think it's my job to always put our program in the best position to have success, and no matter what that looks like, right?," Silverfield said. "Whether it's an in-season staff shakeup, a post-season staff shakeup, a change in nutrition plan, a change of travel plans, it's always my job is to make sure that whatever we're doing, it's putting our guys in the best position to have success between the white lines on Saturday."

"And that that comes from every single thing that's involved in our program, and I'm looking at and evaluating every single thing every single day, and wins and losses and all those things, and whatever it takes for us to be successful, we'll do."

Arkansas offensive coordinator Tim Cramsey has been under fire from fans for nearly the entire season as Arkansas' offense, which is 125th in the country in scoring offense at 19.6 points per game and last among SEC and Power Four teams.

Cramsey has been Silverfield's OC since 2022, when he became the offensive coordinator at Memphis.

Arkansas scored only 10 points against Missouri on Saturday after its best offensive performance against a Power Four team in its 31-21 win over Vanderbilt.

Arkansas Razorbacks offensive coordinator Tim Cramsey views his unit prior to the Tennessee game. | Nilsen Roman, Hogs On SI Images

Silverfield was also asked about Cramsey's autonomy when it comes to calling plays. After a failed fourth and 1 on a botched snap to Cam Settles that led to a Missouri touchdown on Saturday, Silverfield said he loved the play call and would call it again.

"We're all part of the practice plan, putting it together and all that stuff," Silverfield said. "But in game, for the most part, Tim is calling. Now we'll talk through some certain things. We'll sit there and say, 'okay, hey, this run may work versus this. We're getting this. We got to go to that. This check needs to occur.' Having that conversation.

"So I think it's everybody involved. But if there's 80 plays in a game, you know, Crams does a great job in the past and will continue to do a good job of putting us in the right position throughout those. Now, sometimes there are suggestions: 'Hey, this is the call we need to make, right? Whether it's even the first short yardage call, what do we what do we like versus this? What are they going to show?' But great faith in what he's going to do and what he is doing. Ultimately, he's got the ability to call the play and put us in the right situation."

Arkansas returns to the gridiron on Saturday against Auburn at Jordan Hare Stadium with kickoff set for 11:45 p.m. CT. on the SEC Network.

Sign up to our free newsletter, and follow us on Facebook, X (Twitter) and subscribe to our YouTube channel for the latest news.