Briles picked to run Razorbacks’ offense

FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. — Head coach Sam Pittman has named Kendal Briles as the Razorbacks’ new offensive coordinator.

Briles brings a wealth of knowledge and success to Arkansas as a play caller during his career. The 2015 Broyles Award finalist has led offenses at each of his four coaching stops – Florida State, Houston, Florida Atlantic and Baylor. Since taking over play-calling duties prior to the Cotton Bowl at the end of the 2014 season, when his Baylor offense set an NCAA bowl record with 601 passing yards against Michigan State, Briles’ offenses have averaged 39.5 points per game.

“We are very excited to have Kendal, his wife Sarah and their three children join us at Arkansas, they will be a welcomed addition to the football family we are building,” Pittman said. “Kendal brings an innovative offensive approach to our coaching staff. His offenses have been successful by both running and throwing the football in some of the nation’s most competitive conferences. He is well known for his ability to both recruit and develop young men into outstanding football players.”

At Florida State, Briles took over a struggling offense that ranked 103rd in total offense (361.2 ypg) and 113th in scoring (21.9 ppg) in 2018. In his lone season with the Seminoles, he engineered an offense that improved greatly in both categories gaining 403.2 yards per game and scoring 29.1 points per game. The Noles’ running game saw the biggest improvement going from one of the worst in the FBS (91.1 ypg) in 2018 to 133.8 yards per game this season. The FSU offense also saw huge turnarounds in the red zone (78.1% in 2018, 86.5% in 2019) and third down conversions (29.1% in 2018, 37.5% in 2019). Briles’ offense was led by a pair of All-ACC performers this season in RB Cam Akers and WR Tamorrion Terry. Akers ran for 1,144 yards and 14 touchdowns during the regular season to rank 20th in the nation with 104 yards per game. His rushing yards are the sixth-highest in a single-season at FSU with his 14 rushing scores ranking seventh all time. Terry has 51 catches for 1,023 yards and eight touchdowns with the Seminoles yet to play in the Sun Bowl next week.