Ad Disclosure
Arkansas has finalized Chad Morris’ first defensive staff in Fayetteville Wednesday by announcing the hires of four more coaches. These four will work under defensive coordinator John Chavis, with two of the coaches having experience under the long-time SEC coordinator.
Tuesday, Arkansas announced the official hiring of Morris’ offensive staff.
Steve Caldwell (defensive line), Ron Cooper (secondary), John Scott Jr. (defensive line) and Mark Smith (secondary) were all announced Wednesday by the school. In addition to naming these coaches, the school also provided information on each coach as well as a statement on each coach from Coach Morris.
Here’s that information:
Steve Caldwell – Defensive Line
Recently the assistant head coach/defensive line coach for four seasons at Boise State, Caldwell returns to Arkansas for the second time in his career and reunites with defensive coordinator John Chavis, who he spent 15 seasons with at Tennessee.
“I consider Steve Caldwell one of the best defensive line coaches around. Steve has a great reputation across the country and when I started to look for a defensive line coach his name was the first to pop up. He has great familiarity with Coach Chavis, this program and has built great relationships in the state. I’m excited about Steve’s strong recruiting ties in our state and to see him development our defensive line.”
Ron Cooper – Secondary
A former head coach and a longtime defensive assistant coach, Cooper spent the 2017 season at Texas A&M as the secondary coach under Chavis.
“I’m excited to have Ron join our staff and help lead our secondary. His time working with coach Chavis along with his knowledge and experience in the SEC are invaluable. He will be a big part of our defensive staff having great continuity right away and I’m excited to see his impact on the recruiting trail.”
John Scott Jr. – Defensive Line
Served as defensive line coach at Arkansas in 2017 and has 15 years of experience at the college and NFL levels.
“I’m excited to have John on our staff. His connections with our current players and his background at both the college and NFL level is valuable to our growth. We had many quality candidates for this job, but John’s ability to connect with our players here as well as his NFL background is really what intrigued Coach Chavis and myself.”
Mark Smith – Secondary
The Director of Recruiting for three years for coach Morris at SMU, Smith also served as the program’s defensive analyst in 2017, and was a Texas high school head coach for four seasons from 2011-14.
“I’m excited to have Mark Smith join our coaching staff. He did a great job leading our recruiting department at SMU while also handling analyst responsibilities on the offensive and defensive side of the ball. His knowledge and ability to recruit along with his passion for the game excites me about his future. I know he’ll work extremely well with Coach Chavis and Coach Cooper in leading our secondary unit.”
A graduate of the University of Tennessee, Michael Wayne Bratton oversees the news coverage for Saturday Down South. Michael previously worked for FOX Sports and NFL.com
