More Guessing on New Defensive Coordinator for Razorbacks

Arkansas native with no coordinator experience pops up on radar now

Author:
Andy Hodges
Publish date:
Dec 9, 2022 2:20 PM EST

In this story:

FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. — Raiding national champions' coaching staffs is a risky thing.

That was the first thought with a report from Dawgs Daily last night about Georgia defensive line coach Tray Scott being target at Arkansas.

Granted, Arkansas is in the market for a new defensive coordinator with Barry Odom now in the bright lights of Las Vegas trying to see if he can create something there.

There's a path for that thought process that often can lead into a brick wall. Just because Scott, a Crossett native, was on the staff with Razorbacks coach Sam Pittman in Athens he would be a natural target.

Tray Scott-Georgia — Georgia defensive line coach Tray Scott on the sidelines before a Bulldogs game.

Hold up, though.

As people have discovered through the years raiding these championship teams' staffs for assistant coaches, particularly making career position coaches coordinators is a land mine that blows up in everybody's face about as often as it works out.

On social media, there is a buzz of people, particularly in Arkansas that would like the see the old Crossett Eagle come back to his home state.

The question everybody likes to assume the answer to, though, is while he's apparently done an excellent job on Kirby Smart's staff recruiting and coaching players up to the NFL level, can that translate to Arkansas.

It usually doesn't happen with the Hogs consistently enough to move the needle at a lot of positions.

The coordinator can't coach every position and shouldn't be expected to do that. Smart wasn't the greatest secondary coach in the world, according to people in Tuscaloosa, but was much better coordinating the entire unit.

He won national championships at Alabama and, now, Georgia.

It's also the same reason you can't assume because a coach has success at one school translates to another one. There haven't exactly been a ton of coaches win multiple national titles at different schools.

Saban didn't have the success he's had with the Crimson Tide at either Michigan State or LSU. Yes, he won a title in Baton Rouge, but just one and bailed to the Miami Dolphins.

While Scott may be a good, but young (he's 38) defensive line coach that has been able to recruit to Georgia can he get those same players to Fayetteville in enough numbers?

Then you can worry about whether he can manage the entire defense and draw up things on a piece of paper to stop folks.

There is no track record of that.

Which means the search may not be over just a week into looking.