Boise’s Nutt Heads Home To Coach Razorbacks Koetter, Offensive Coordinator At Oregon, To Guide Broncos

Two decades after telling Bear Bryant that his dream was to one day coach Arkansas’ football team, Houston Nutt returned to his home state Wednesday as coach of the Razorbacks.

“Dreams do come true, and this has been my dream, to stand up here in front of you with a Razorback helmet,” Nutt said, putting his hand on football headgear at a news conference at the university’s basketball arena.

He left Boise State after just one season. Dirk Koetter, offensive coordinator at Oregon, was hired as the Broncos’ new head coach within minutes of the time Nutt notified Boise athletic director Gene Bleymaier he was leaving.

Koetter was a finalist the last two times Boise State selected a new football coach.

Nutt coached Boise State to a 4-7 record this year after leading Murray State to a 22-3 mark in the two previous seasons.

As the Razorbacks’ fifth coach in nine years, Nutt will try to right a program that has lost games and fans throughout the decade.

Arkansas is 38-51-2 in the 1990s and hasn’t been to a major bowl since the Cotton Bowl after the 1989 season. Average home attendance this decade has been as low as 44,551 in 1996. In 1989, the Razorbacks drew 51,138 on average.

“I can promise you this, I’ll go from daylight all the way to exhaustion to make this the best Razorback football team,” Nutt said. “I can’t wait to get started.”

Nutt, 40, replaces Danny Ford, who was 26-30-1 in five years and 4-7 each of the last two seasons.

Bryant recruited Nutt at Little Rock Central, where Nutt played football and basketball.