Josh Heupel explains 'balancing act' of trying to prepare for new-look Arkansas coaching staff

Josh Heupel knows exactly what Tennessee is getting into after the bye week. The same Arkansas team that lost 56-13 at home to Notre Dame and lost 32-31 at Memphis two weeks ago is the same team that was a touchdown away from beating No. 4 Ole Miss on the road on September 13.

“It’s a one-possession game at the end of the fourth quarter,” Heupel said on Wednesday, referencing the 41-35 loss in Oxford.

Still, when No. 15 Tennessee (4-1, 1-1 SEC) hosts Arkansas (2-3, 0-1) next Saturday (4:15 p.m. Eastern Time, SEC Network), the Razorbacks will have a new head coach, a new defensive coordinator and a new offensive coordinator. 

The Razorbacks fired Sam Pittman on Sunday, after the lopsided loss to Notre Dame, and promoted offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach Bobby Petrino to interim head coach. 

Bobby Petrino fired three defensive coaches on Monday

Petrino on Monday fired defensive coordinator Travis Williams, defensive line coach Deke Adams and co-defensive coordinator Marcus Woodson. 

Arkansas promoted assistant defensive line coach Chris Wilson to defensive coordinator and running backs coach Kolby Smith as offensive coordinator, while Petrino will still handle offensive play calling. 

Notre Dame led 42-10 in the second quarter on Saturday and had 420 yards of total offense, leading to the coaching change after the team’s third straight loss.  

“I know last week didn’t go the way anybody wanted it to, but this is a really good football team,” Heupel said. “It’s the next one for us inside of this league. Players understand you got to come to play every Saturday.”

It was Arkansas last season, with Petrino in his first season back in Fayetteville as offensive coordinator, that upset a fourth-ranked Tennessee team 19-14 at Razorback Stadium. 

Quarterback Taylen Green passed for 266 yards and Arkansas ran for 137 yards and two touchdowns. Tennessee trailed 3-0 at halftime, rallied to take a 14-3 midway through the third quarter, then saw the Razorbacks come storming back. 

“Offensively (Petrino has) always done a great job,” Heupel said. “I think you’ve got to be ready to handle the run game. And with who they have now (Green), the quarterback run game as well can be a huge part of what they decide to do. But he’s always got the ability to be extremely multiple. 

“And personnel groupings, formations, motions, communication, all three levels (of your defense have) to be in sync. And ultimately he’s going to apply pressure to you and you got to be able to adjust and you got to go play at a really high level.”

Chris Wilson was defensive coordinator at Colorado, Miss State

On the other side of the ball, Heupel said Tennessee will have to rely on what Chris Wilson, the new Arkansas defensive coordinator, has done “historically.”

Wilson was the defensive coordinator of the UFL’s Houston Roughnecks in the spring and was previously defensive coordinator for the Houston Gamblers in the USFL, as well as at Colorado (2021-22) and Mississippi State (2010-12).

“So it’s a balancing act of all of that,” Heupel said. “A year ago, offensively, they had success playing a version of their three down on that night. And so we’ll prepare for that and then adjust to anything else that we see.”