LITTLE ROCK — Hiring John L. Smith for a year makes perfect sense.
Hiring him for longer, well, that remains to be seen, and Smith goes in knowing the coaching pool will be deeper in December than April.
Jeff Long kept his cards close to his vest as to whether he would hire an interim or a new head coach, or if he would promote from within or hire from outside.
In a way, he did both.
Smith, who left the Arkansas Razorbacks in December for a head coaching opportunity and has been given a one year contract by Arkansas, is familiar with all the players and most of the assistant coaches.
He is also very knowledgeable about the offensive system Bobby Petrino installed as the head coach, and the defensive scheme that he watched as special teams and outside linebackers coach for the Razorbacks.
More than once a film or skull session was stopped so Smith could give his opinion; everyone, including the head coach, listened when Smith talked.
Smith had a lot to do with trying to simplify some of the complicated blitz packages that former defensive coordinator Willy Robinson brought with him from the NFL.
Details will be known later, but it might not have been as easy a decision as some might think for Smith to leave Weber State. It is his alma mater.
Yet, this is also the last shot for Smith, 63, to have an impact as a head coach in a major conference.
Smith was 132-86 as a head coach before being fired at Michigan State in 2006.
He was out of football until Petrino hired him. He was Petrino’s primary mentor in the profession, but there are not as many similarities as one might think.
There is a Youtube video of Smith having a meltdown at Michigan State. Compared to what the world saw of Petrino, especially during the LSU game last season, Smith looks more like he lost his hat than his temper.
Smith was always found to be open, honest and candid.
He has a sense of humor and irony.
If he didn’t, he wouldn’t have agreed to take the place of a personal friend who left under a cloud, and to work alongside Paul Petrino.
Smith might have talked with Bobby Petrino first, but it still proves Smith is an island unto himself. This is a golden opportunity for someone staring his golden years in the eye.
Maybe Weber State will hire Petrino, who will coach again, probably sooner rather than later.
Now, though, the door really begins to close on the last three weeks.
Smith won’t be an immediate favorite of some; he understands that. Others will have a wait-and-see attitude. Others, mostly those who have met him, will embrace him.
He won’t so much as add a single wrinkle to the offense. He’s a guy who knows firsthand if something isn’t broken don’t try to fix it.
As for the defense, well, that’s probably where he’ll wade in the most because defense was always his side of the ball.
Mostly, he brings wisdom, experience, maturity and knowledge into a situation that screamed for all four of those qualities.
It won’t be surprising if it is learned he was Long’s first choice as an interim because it just makes sense to have a familiar face who is familiar with everything about the program.
Long has known how delicate this situation with the football program has been since the fiasco began, plus he knows what the fans’ expectations are.
As does Smith, who will have the same expectations. No one will demand more from himself, his staff and his team than Smith.
He’s the great equalizer in a situation that could have been deemed tenuous at best.
This will rock and maybe shock the football world. It is unprecedented, but in the end, Jeff Long knew what he needed and he found it in John L. Smith.
At least for a year.
Sports, Pages 13 on 04/24/2012