Razorback Fans Had Disdain for Wrong Coordinator When Judging On-Field Work

The numbers aren't even close when it comes to how unfair how Arkansas faithful open spoke of Briles, Odom past three seasons

Author:
Kent Smith
Updated:
Jul 11, 2023 5:25 PM EDT
Original:
Jul 10, 2023

In this story:

Arkansas Razorbacks

FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. – Whether it's fair or not, it seems that over the past three years with the Arkansas football team that if there was praise that could be given on the defensive side of the ball, it was heaped upon former defensive coordinator Barry Odom. When there was fault to be found in the offense, the pitchforks came out in full force for offensive coordinator Kendal Briles.

It was always perplexing. No one seemed to be willing to hold Odom accountable. He was always the master strategist and it was the players who were inherently bad. As for Briles, he was treated as the buffoon who blundered his way into points by way of the superior offensive skills of guys like KJ Jefferson, Treylon Burks and a never-ending stable of elite running backs.

On the surface, it made sense from an emotional standpoint. Briles came in with a dark cloud over his head and left with issues outside what took place on the field that continuously bubbled just beneath the surface. He was viewed as brash and bold despite regularly promoting his recruiting trips in various old school soccer mom minivans.

As for Odom, he was one of the good ol' boys. Fans saw him as a nose to the grindstone worker who regularly went on long walks with Arkansas coach Sam Pittman to talk game and nothing else at all times. He was understated and probably spent his down time tending to a field of tomatoes, purple hull peas and deer corn while stopping to draw up defensive schemes in the weed-free dirt.

Yet, like it or not, perception wasn't reality. At least not when it came to on-field production. Odom built his reputation as a defensive genius on the strength of one game against Ole Miss and the backs of a group of defensive players who had been at Arkansas so long they were about to start drawing retirement.

In Odom's first season, the defense finished No. 97 in college football. That fabled game against Ole Miss when Odom dropped everyone back into coverage against a Lane Kiffin team that refused to take what was given, and Hudson Clark lost his mind for a career interception day, is the only reason that team fell barely inside the Top 100 defenses.

In that game, Matt Corral fumbled with the Rebels a yard from the end zone. He also threw six interceptions as Kiffin ignored that his team could run at will against the Razorbacks. Ole Miss put up nearly five yards per carry that game and just wouldn't let the pass game go.

Everyone looks back on that Ole Miss game and the Mississippi State game two weeks prior, both against teams that could have put up way more points if they had just run the ball, and forget all the other games. There was a bit of euphoria because Arkansas won its first SEC games in 20 tries, but that doesn't change what happened in the other games.

The defense gave up 42 points to Texas A&M, 63 to Florida, 52 to Alabama, and 50 to a bad Missouri team. Odom's defense gave up an average of 52 points per game to nearly half the schedule.

Remember that Georgia game to open the season where the Bulldogs dropped 32 points in the second half for a 37-10 win? That brief glimmer of hope followed by an absolute hammer dropped on the Arkansas fan base? That was the midway point as far as futility for the defense that year.

Meanwhile, on the other side of the ball, Briles was able to ensure that Arkansas won every game Odom's defense managed to keep under 30 points. The offense put up 28, 31, 35 and 48 points against SEC opponents and lost all four games. As the season went on, chemistry built and tape got out for evaluation by other teams, the offense got better while the defense took a sharp nose dive.

The following year, stacked with super seniors, was the only season the Arkansas defense wasn't horrible. It's the only Top 40 defense the Razorbacks have had in the Pittman tenure, giving up only 23 points per game. That team was loaded with talent at linebacker and on the defensive line.

Again, every time the defense held a team under 37 points, the Razorbacks won. The defensive goal was simply to not give up five touchdowns and a field goal and a playoff spot could have been reality. In the three losses against teams that weren't eventual national champion Georgia, the offense scored an average of 36.3 points, including 51 in a loss to Ole Miss. All of those were in regulation. Odom's defense gave up 169 points in the season's four losses and that's only because Georgia called off the dogs early.

The Arkansas offense continued to improve from the year before, posting 31 points per game despite a schedule that featured three of the nation's Top 7 defenses in Georgia, Texas A&M and Penn State. The Hogs racked up 443.3 yards of offense per game and averaged a gaudy 6.44 yards per play.

The following season, both coaches lost key players on their side of the ball. Gone was Treylon Burks from the offensive side. Morgan and Hayden Henry departed on defense. To make matters worse, Jefferson got hurt, missing two games at quarterback and playing another where the injuries were so bad he could barely function.

No one will forget how lost the offense looked with Malik Hornsby and Cade Fortin in at quarterback or how limited Jefferson looked against Liberty as he drug his broken body down the field. Despite this, the offense continued to improve.

The Razorbacks posted the 15th best offense in all of college football. That was nearly 100 spots better than the team Briles inherited from former head coach Chad Morris that finished No. 110 with an average of 21 points per game. In what would be his final season as offensive coordinator, the Briles offense put up over 471 yards per game while averaging 33 points per game with a quarter of the season made mute by an injury at quarterback.

Meanwhile, that one above average season with a team full of super seniors was met with a massive plunge as Odom's defense fell 62 spots to No. 101. The defense gave up 31 points per game and nearly 300 yards. Morale fell and got even lower with all the turmoil that led to defensive back Myles Slusher leaving the team after hanging out in Oklahoma rather than travel with the Razorbacks to face Missouri.

While Odom brought a lot to the table when it comes to what one might cherish in a coach off the field, especially in comparison to the increasingly heavy baggage Briles carries around, there's no contest when it comes to what took place on the field over the last three seasons.

The offense got better every year and consistently put up enough points to win games if the defense could just find a way to make a stop. If Odom could have found a way to contain Jamison Williams even a little in 2021 instead of giving up touchdown passes of 79 yards, 40 yards and 32 yards, the losing streak to Alabama is over. If the defense doesn't give up 225 yards and three touchdowns on three rushing plays late in last year's game, there's a chance the streak ends there also. The offense had battled back. America started switching the channel to see a possible upset only to watch the defense fall flat on its face.

No one has to believe Briles was a saint. There's an argument to be made that his offense had certain aspects of it that limited the growth of Jefferson when it comes to reaching his full potential as an NFL draft pick. However, as much as Arkansas fans like to revise history, he was a great offensive coordinator.

The Razorbacks left six wins on the table over the past three seasons because of the defense. Arkansas only lost three times over the past three seasons when the defense held a team under 27 points. Those losses were the freak fumble play at the goal line against Texas A&M, the Malik Hornsby game against LSU, and the game Jefferson played badly hurt against Liberty.

Feel how you want about the two as men. However, when it comes to who came to Arkansas and got the job done, only one of the two truly produced. If the new defensive staff comes in and makes the Razorback defense average, it moves up nearly 40 spots. If the Dan Enos experiment turns a Jefferson led offense average, it falls 50 spots.
That's all you need to know.