Broyles discusses awards show, Arkansas’ ongoing coaching search

BY NATE ALLEN Northwest Arkansas Times

Posted on Saturday, December 8, 2007

URL: http://www.wholehogsports.com/nwat/60037/

While taking some lumps in Arkansas for not yet finding a football coach, the University of Arkansas and its Razorbacks likely never fared better in national awards than Thursday night’s ESPN-televised Home Deport Awards program in Orlando, Fla.

“ People were telling me, ‘ Arkansas is controlling this program, ’” Arkansas athletics director Frank Broyles said Friday, back at his office in Fayetteville. “ There were four Razorbacks getting awards. So there were Razorbacks on there every 15 minutes. ”

Junior running back Darren McFadden, now in New York as one of four Heisman Trophy finalists when that prestigious award is announced tonight, won both the Walter Camp Player of the Year Award and his second straight Doak Walker Award in Orlando as the nation’s outstanding running back.

Junior center Jonathan Luigs was awarded the Rimington Award as the nation’s outstanding center, and junior running back / kick returner Felix Jones was honored as part of the Walter Camp All-American team.

Broyles, a coaching legend at Arkansas from 1958-76 and the UA’s AD since 1973 retiring Jan. 1 to emeritus status after 50 years at the UA, received the national Contributions to College Football Award.

“ This was the most positive publicity in years, ” Broyles said. “ With all our players winning and the award they gave me, it was wonderful for the University and the Razorbacks. Everybody said so. ”

Not just because it was a great award for one of college athletics’ true giants, Broyles’ award carried more significance than any Thursday night. It contributed towards what has become his zealous undertaking of helping people cope with Alzheimer’s, the horrible illness that claimed Barbara Broyles, his longtime wife and mother of his six children.

Introduced by one of his former Razorbacks, Dallas Cowboys owner Jerry Jones, Broyles, with the help of ESPN’s Lee Corso, worked into his address his work on Alzheimer’s and the Alzheimer’s caregivers book he has written for families with a loved one afflicted by the disease that robs them of their memory.

“ Jerry Jones was sensational, ” Broyles said. “ President Clinton taped a tribute to me and Lee Corso gave them two or three of the questions he was going to ask to give me time to fill in. Then we went to the Alzheimer’s and got a wonderful response.

“ Betsy [one of Broyles ’ twin daughters ] told me in five minutes they had 14 telephone calls and 30 calls for the night. Lee told me he was going to ask about Alzheimer’s and the book so we got a good plug in that nationally. ”

Asked about his input into the coaching search to replace Houston Nutt, resigned Nov. 26 to become the head coach at Ole Miss on Nov. 27, Broyles said it remains “ zero, ” and that it is new athletics director Jeff Long’s call and should be.

“ I can just go to the games and worry about the Razorbacks and not the coach, ” Broyles said.

Paul Johnson, the Navy coach not believed to have been among those Long considers, accepted the head coaching job Georgia Tech Friday.

That means East Carolina coach Skip Holtz, who was interviewed by Georgia Tech and is believed under Arkansas consideration, remains available.

Others who either have interviewed or are believed possible candidates include Arkansas interim coach Reggie Herring (the defensive coordinator elevated to interim coach for Arkansas ’ Cotton Bowl game against Missouri ), Auburn defensive coordinator Will Muschamp (who coached at Eastern Kentucky when Long was Eastern Kentucky’s athletics director ), Cincinnati coach Brian Kelly, Tulsa offensive coordinator Gus Malzahn and Michigan defensive coordinator Ron English.

Sources also have reported Tennessee Titans offensive coordinator Norm Chow, formerly the offensive coordinator at Southern California and Brigham Young University, and Atlanta Falcons coach Bobby Petrino, formerly the University of Louisville head coach, also could be interested.

Long has consistently said his search will be “ thorough ” and that in addition to college head coaches, college assistant coaches and NFL coaches are being considered.

Meanwhile for their bowl game preparations, the Razorbacks under Herring practice this morning, one of only two practices this week due to final exams at the UA.