FAYETTEVILLE — Former Arkansas receivers coach Kris Cinkovich has agreed to become offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach at Idaho for first-year head coach Paul Petrino.
Cinkovich interviewed on campus last weekend with Petrino, the two-time offensive coordinator at Arkansas, and jumped at the opportunity to take his first coordinator’s role on the college level.
“It’s going to be a good deal,” said Cinkovich, who had been at Arkansas since 2010 and helped develop record-breaking receivers Cobi Hamilton, Jarius Wright, Joe Adams and Greg Childs.
“The big thing about Paul Petrino is he’s a winner. He’s been successful everywhere he’s been.
“I was out there last weekend and their facilities are in better shape than I anticipated and their roster is in good shape. They lost a lot of close games last year.”
A native of western Washington, Cinkovich played two years on the offensive line at Carroll College under Bob Petrino Sr., graduating from the school in Helena, Mont., in 1984. Bobby Petrino was a graduate assistant at Carroll in 1983 during Cinkovich’s junior year, and the pair was reunited on the Arkansas staff in 2010.
Cinkovich spent nine years as the head coach at Las Vegas High School before rejoining the college ranks as receivers coach at UNLV in 2004, working six more years in Las Vegas before coming to Fayetteville.
“We’ve loved it at Arkansas,” Cinkovich said, referring to his wife, Joanie, and family. “My time at the university was awesome.
“My memories will be all the exciting moments we were a part of, all the big games and the bowl games we played in. And the fans of the Razorback nation were awesome.”