Norvell DC Candidates

[BBHog]

Does Norvell have any good defensive coaching connections from his past jobs that he could bring in as DC?  If he is coming to Arkansas, he surely isn't bringing any of his defensive staff.

[Kevin]

Todd graham

[JONAS]

Todd Graham, but he ain't coming.

[Pig in the Pokey]

YES he IS, Jonas.

[BBHog]

Todd Graham, but he ain't coming.

Yuck.  Check out his defensive rankings.  Since taking over at Arizona State, it looks like he turned a decent defense into one of the worst in the country.

[VBMark]

Graham already went to UF

[jrulz83]

Guv has family in Memphis and Guv has all but guaranteed Graham.

[JONAS]

YES he IS, Jonas.

I hope so, but too many have said he is out.  I know you have said that it was him from the beginning.   

[Rudy Baylor]

Todd Graham has never been worth a crap as a defensive coach

[King Kong]

Graham already went to UF

Todd Grantham is at FL. Todd Graham is a different coach

[Hugo Bezdek]

The Grinch.

[bosshog84]

I wish we would go after Shannon for our DC

[hog_fan]

Would be a terrible hire for DC

[JONAS]

Guv has family in Memphis and Guv has all but guaranteed Graham.

That's fine with me.  I'm just afraid all of us will be disappointed in the hire.  I have a feeling it won't be Gus, Kiffin, or Norvell.  Could be Chad Morris or Tim Horton.  I heard several members of BOT are pushing really hard for Horton.

[Waldron_Hog]

What about chavis?

[Captain Morgan]

I wish we would go after Shannon for our DC

So get Nevin Shapiro's coach... Great!

[hog_fan]

That's fine with me.  I'm just afraid all of us will be disappointed in the hire.  I have a feeling it won't be Gus, Kiffin, or Norvell.  Could be Chad Morris or Tim Horton.  I heard several members of BOT are pushing really hard for Horton.

So you think they hire a position coach for HC?

[Arkansas Fan]

What about Bob Shoop or Chavis?

[Dwight_K_Shrute]

Go Grinch and watch him steal other teams Christmas

[jrulz83]

That's fine with me.  I'm just afraid all of us will be disappointed in the hire.  I have a feeling it won't be Gus, Kiffin, or Norvell.  Could be Chad Morris or Tim Horton.  I heard several members of BOT are pushing really hard for Horton.

If they spent all the money to fire along and Bielem and they come in here with Horton it's going to be bad. Morris will be bad, but Horton will be nuclear holocaust bad. They know there's a potential backlash waiting (unfairly or not) with either of those hires.

[20gauge]

He's sure gonna need one of he gets the job. Neither of these teams can stop each other

[HOGINTENNESSEE]

What about Bob Shoop or Chavis?

Either would be a home run

[JONAS]

So you think they hire a position coach for HC?

I don't know.  Hope not.  That is just what others have been saying.

[JONAS]

If they spent all the money to fire along and Bielem and they come in here with Horton it's going to be bad. Morris will be bad, but Horton will be nuclear holocaust bad. They know there's a potential backlash waiting (unfairly or not) with either of those hires.

Let's hope they know. 

[Hopeful Hog]

That's fine with me.  I'm just afraid all of us will be disappointed in the hire.  I have a feeling it won't be Gus, Kiffin, or Norvell.  Could be Chad Morris or Tim Horton.  I heard several members of BOT are pushing really hard for Horton.

The BOT has been the problem from the beginning.

[jrulz83]

Let's hope they know. 

I would bet that they know, the question is are they arrogant enough to not care?

[Hugo Bezdek]

Go Grinch and watch him steal other teams Christmas

Alex Grinch's defense would fit well with the athletes we have at Arkansas. Aggressive and an emphasis on turnovers. Coached at Mizzou as a position coach before getting the DC job under Leach. He'll be a head coach soon though.

[Fayettechill14]

That's fine with me.  I'm just afraid all of us will be disappointed in the hire.  I have a feeling it won't be Gus, Kiffin, or Norvell.  Could be Chad Morris or Tim Horton.  I heard several members of BOT are pushing really hard for Horton.

No, they aren't

[Smashmouth2004]

Let's hope they know.

Morris would not be a bad hire although most are expecting a bigger name like Malzahn. Morris is a solid coach who can recruit Texas.

[VBMark]

Todd Grantham is at FL. Todd Graham is a different coach

You are right. I was typing while watching the game. Sorry.

[Dwight_K_Shrute]

Alex Grinch's defense would fit well with the athletes we have at Arkansas. Aggressive and an emphasis on turnovers. Coached at Mizzou as a position coach before getting the DC job under Leach. He'll be a head coach soon though.

Yep get a young hungry DC to go with young hungry HC. DC has experience coaching other side of a tempo O and does more with less talent. WSU D overshadowed by Leach's O

[PigInTheHole]

Alex Grinch's defense would fit well with the athletes we have at Arkansas. Aggressive and an emphasis on turnovers. Coached at Mizzou as a position coach before getting the DC job under Leach. He'll be a head coach soon though.

Yes and if Leach leaves good change Grinch takes over

[Fayettechill14]

An idea that isn't as bad as it may sound right now: Paul Rhoads

Yes, I'm aware that Arkansas' 2017 defense was historically bad. The Coastal Carolina game alone may justify not retaining Rhoads. But this defense is in a multi-year rebuild no matter who the coordinator is, and we knew that coming into the season. Switching away from Rhoads won't bring immediate results in 2018 or 2019.

Here are just a couple of defensive problems that pre-date Rhoads:

Problem: Lack of Texas recruiting under Bielema. Just 15 players in 5 years, and I think the defense was hurt by that more than the offense. The Hogs aren't landing the speedy defenders they need from the Lone Star State.
Fix: Rhoads signed 4-star cornerback Chevin Calloway from Dallas in his first class as DC. He's also done a good job mining east Oklahoma for talent, landing CB Jordon Curtis (Jenks), LB Kyrei Fisher (Tulsa Union), and CB Kamren Curl (Muskogee). Rhoads has clearly upgraded Arkansas' defensive recruiting, especially in the secondary.

Problem: Former defensive line coach Rory Segrest was really, really bad.
Fix: Segrest was dismissed after the 2015 season, but the damage was done. Part of Arkansas' switch to the 3-4 is due to the fact that the Hogs don't even have enough SEC-caliber defensive linemen. This was a really bad hire by Bielema, and it's not Rhoads' fault. Fixing the depth on the DL will take a few more years, regardless of who the DC is.

Problem: Robb Smith was not a good secondary coach (or a good recruiter). In addition to his duties as DC, Smith was also a position coach in the secondary, and his secondary was awful.
Fix: Rhoads immediately improved cornerback play in 2016, helping Ryan Pulley develop into an SEC-quality cornerback. Even after Pulley was hurt in 2017, Henre' Toliver stepped up. He was never great, but this was his best season as a pass defender by far. Curl, thrown into the fire as a true freshman, flashed potential and looks like he'll be a good player in time. Next year's projected CB lineup (Pulley and Curl) looks like it'll be a strength of the defense. Again, secondary issues take time to fix.

Again, I'm not saying Rhoads should be Option #1. But if Norvell (or even Gus) can't secure a more proven coordinator, then blowing up all of Rhoads' work to essentially start the rebuild over probably won't work out as well as fans think. This defense is a multi-year project.