Silverfield vows Razorbacks staff “will wow” echoing old promises

Every coach after Bobby Petrino has said some version of the same thing when taking the Arkansas job.

Bret Bielema said it. Chad Morris said it louder. Sam Pittman said it folksier. Even John L. Smith tried to say it but just figuring out what the hell he was talking about most of the time was a bigger issue.

Now Ryan Silverfield has joined the tradition with a promise Razorbacks fans could recite from memory — his staff is going to “blow everybody away.”

At his introduction, Silverfield confidently told the room his assistants would be people fans would love and people outsiders would envy. He said folks would be “blown away by the staff” he was assembling. He said they’d be high-character leaders who would do everything right.

Of course he did. That line has been copy-and-pasted across the last 14 seasons in Fayetteville like it comes with the job description.

Silverfield did not add the part Razorbacks fans now hear in their heads. — “You won’t actually know any of that until much later, and wins will decide everything.”

Maybe he meant it. Maybe he didn’t. But it’s been a lot of years with coaches talking big on Day 1 and talking about “culture building” by Week 4. You wonder if it's handed to them on things they need to know for the job.

Still, Arkansas is piecing together staff hires, and Silverfield has at least shown he knows how to start a puzzle.

The Hogs have reportedly added offensive line coach Jeff Myers, along with Ohio State assistant Marcus Johnson in the trenches. Reports also point to Tim Cramsey as offensive coordinator and Ron Roberts as a defensive coordinator candidate.

Wide receivers coach Larry Smith appears on board, too, reuniting with Silverfield from Memphis. He joins the only returning piece of last year’s picture in tight ends coach Morgan Turner.

It’s a long list. It’s an active list. But it still reads like the same list fans saw during three other coaching regimes: names, titles, and fresh optimism without a single snap played.

Silverfield even brought some flair to the timeline conversation. In his press conference, he noted that building a winner could happen “immediately,” then shifted gears, saying it could happen in “24 years” or “24 days,” whichever came first.

Razorbacks fans have heard stranger things, but the idea of waiting 24 years gets a louder sigh than cheer these days.

Arkansas is expected to hire Jacksonville State OC/QB coach Clint Trickett to Ryan Silverfield’s staff, he tells me.

Previously worked at FAU, Marshall, and Georgia State.

Played QB at FSU & West Virginia. #wps @mzenitz had it first. pic.twitter.com/owBLVmgClf
— Jacob Davis (@JacobScottDavis) December 14, 2025

Razorbacks fans have seen this movie since 2012

Since Petrino left after flying through some handlebars near Elkins, every Arkansas coach has stepped up to a podium and laid out a vision with bright lights and upbeat music.

Each was supposed to modernize the program, energize the locker room, recruit at a higher level, and make the Hogs a team worthy of SEC Saturdays.

And yet, the wins stayed stubbornly average or worse.

Bielema brought Big Ten toughness. Morris brought “Hammer Down.” Pittman brought warmth and credibility. All brought a version of “Trust us, we’ve assembled great people.”

Razorbacks fans have trusted. And trusted. And trusted.

Silverfield is the latest to inherit this recycled optimism. Maybe he will break the streak. Maybe his staff will finally be the one that does more than inspire preseason stories.

But in Arkansas, promises have become the cheapest part of football.

When fans hear things like “high-character staff," they nod politely. They’ve heard that every season. When they hear this group will “pour into players,” they nod again. Same line, different coach.

Even the idea that the staff will “love this community” has been embroidered onto Razorbacks throw pillows by now.

The difference comes in results. And the Hogs have not had enough results since 2012 to justify belief in a grand December declaration.

For now, Silverfield gets the benefit of early December hope — the same benefit others enjoyed right before September changed everything.

Arkansas is hiring Ohio State Assistant OL coach Marcus Johnson and Memphis OL coach Jeff Myers as its offensive line coaches, per @mzenitz.

Two huge additions to Ryan Silverfield’s staff. #WPS pic.twitter.com/KViYklooi6
— Grayson Pierce (@GraysonPierce4) December 8, 2025

What the hires say — and what they don’t

The new names do bring experience. Myers and Johnson have SEC and Power Five backgrounds. Cramsey has play-calling experience.

Smith knows Silverfield’s system well. Roberts has worked in difficult defensive leagues. These are not guesswork hires.

But none guarantee that Arkansas will suddenly block, tackle, and score better than last year. That part is the mystery every staff inherits and every fan waits to see unfold.

Silverfield’s promise to blow people away is fine. But nothing blows anyone away in Fayetteville anymore unless it shows up in the win column.

After so many reset buttons since 2012, Razorbacks fans will treat this like they treat spring practice photos: interesting, but not convincing.

The Hogs need more than titles on a website. They need production, change, and SEC-level execution. Silverfield knows it. The fan base definitely knows it.

And this staff, whether it ends up flashy or simple, will be judged by the same way all Arkansas staffs are judged — not in December, but when the scoreboard lights up.

Razorback fans aren't patient. That disappeared a few years ago.

Key takeaways

Silverfield promised a staff that would “blow everybody away,” a promise Arkansas coaches have recycled since 2012.
Several assistants are joining, but none guarantee wins the Razorbacks have lacked for more than a decade.
Hogs fans will believe change when they see results, not when they hear December speeches.

Razorbacks fans have seen this movie since 2012

What the hires say — and what they don’t

Key takeaways

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