Houston Nutt
Houston Dale Nutt, Jr., (born
14 October 1957), is the head coach of the
Arkansas Razorbacks football team at the
University of Arkansas.
Early life and family
Houston Dale Nutt was born on
14 October 1957 at
Little Rock, Arkansas. He is the son of Houston Dale Nutt, Sr. and Emogene Nutt and is the oldest of four children. His parents taught at the
Arkansas School for the Deaf at
Little Rock, Arkansas for 35 years. His father also served as athletic director and head basketball coach for the school. His father was inducted into the
Arkansas Sports Hall of Fame in
2001.
Houston Nutt is married to his wife, Diana, who also graduated from
Oklahoma State University. They have four children together: Houston III (3/11/87), twins Hailey and Hanna (9/26/88), and Haven (3/19/91).
Nutt's brother
Dickey Nutt is the head basketball coach at
Arkansas State University and his brother
Danny Nutt is the running backs coach at Arkansas. Nutt's other brother
Dennis Nutt is an assistant basketball coach at
Coastal Carolina University.
College athletic career
Nutt was the last player recruited by legendary Arkansas head coach
Frank Broyles before his retirement in
1976. Nutt was recruited as a drop-back style
quarterback and started four games as a true freshman after starting quarterback
Ron Calcagni was sidelined with an injury. Nutt also played that year for the
Southwest Conference champion Arkansas
basketball team under coach
Eddie Sutton which went 26-2 and bulled its way to a 16-0 conference mark.
With the retirement of Frank Broyles, Arkansas hired
Lou Holtz as the head football coach. Holtz established an
option offense which did not make use of Nutt's passing style and relegated him to the bench as a backup.
Disappointed by his lack of playing time, Nutt transferred to
Oklahoma State University and played two years as the starting quarterback. During his time at Oklahoma State he also played for the basketball team. Nutt graduated from Oklahoma State in
1981 with a degree in
physical education.
Assistant coaching career
After graduation Nutt became a graduate assistant for Oklahoma State under head coach
Jimmy Johnson. In
1983 Nutt returned to Arkansas and became an assistant coach under his former coach Lou Holtz. In the spring of
1984 Nutt was hired by
Arkansas State University as a full-time assistant coach but chose to return to Oklahoma State that summer as a receiver's coach before ever reporting for the Arkansas State job.
|
Coach Nutt during practice. |
Nutt spent six seasons as an assistant coach for receivers and quarterbacks at Oklahoma State and was promoted to
offensive coordinator in
1989. During his years at Oklahoma State he coached legendary running backs
Barry Sanders and
Thurman Thomas.
In
1990 Nutt returned to the University of Arkansas as an assistant under head coach
Jack Crowe and established a reputation as an excellent recruiter. Nutt remained with the Razorbacks for three seasons and established relationships with Arkansas high school football coaches that would serve him in good stead in later years.
Career at Murray State
In
1993 Nutt received his first head coaching position at
NCAA Division I-AA Murray State University. He struggled during his first two seasons on the field with 4-7 and 5-6 records respectively but had success rebuilding the team personnel.
In
1995 his efforts paid off with an 11-1 record and an
Ohio Valley Conference championship after reeling off an 8-0 conference mark. Nutt received Ohio Valley Conference Coach of the Year honors and was recognized with the
Eddie Robinson National Division I-AA Coach of the Year Award.
Nutt repeated his success for the
1996 season by establishing an 11-2 record and completing another undefeated run through his Ohio Valley Conference schedule. Murray State won its first round Division I-AA playoff appearance, earning Nutt the OVC Coach of the Year honors and regional Coach of the Year honors.
Career at Boise State
Nutt made the step up to
NCAA Division I-A the next year when
Boise State hired him to take over their program, which was the lowest ranked of 112 Division-IA schools and had posted a poor 2-10 record the year before. Boise State had just made the jump to Division I-A football and was looking for a recruiter and motivator to jump start their program.
Nutt's team earned a respectable 5-6 record in
1997 playing at the Division I-A level with its Division I-AA players. Nutt's team beat rival
Idaho and almost pulled off an upset against
Big Ten Conference program
Wisconsin.
Career as Arkansas head coach
Nutt became the head coach of the Razorbacks on
10 December 1997, succeeding head coach
Danny Ford. The Razorback team had suffered through a long low period under a succession for head coaches in the previous years, having only received two bowl bids in the eight seasons prior to Nutt's arrival.
Nutt's predecessor, Danny Ford, had limited success on the field during his tenure, struggling through back-to-back 4-7 seasons in his last two years, however Ford did succeed in recruiting a solid squad which Nutt inherited for his first season.
Nutt's inherited Razorbacks were picked to finish last in the
Southeastern Conference Western Division in
1998 but ended up with a 9-3 record and a share of the division title. The Razorbacks almost defeated the soon-to-be National Champion
University of Tennessee on its home field during the season. For their efforts the Razorbacks received their first-ever invitation to the
Citrus Bowl and ended the season ranked 16th after losing to the
University of Michigan. Nutt was selected as the Football News' National Coach of the Year.
In
1999 Nutt's Razorbacks were picked to win the SEC Western Division but suffered a series of setbacks during the season but recovered to defeat nationally ranked Tennessee and
Mississippi State University to earn a
Cotton Bowl bid versus arch-rival
Texas. The Razorbacks defeated Texas 27-6, becoming the first team to ever hold Texas to negative rushing yards in a game. The Cotton Bowl victory propelled them into the Top 20 rankings to end the season.
For the
2000 season the Razorbacks lost the core of his Danny Ford built team and suffered a string of injuries to his remaining starters including season-ending injuries to all of the starting running backs. The Razorbacks struggled through the season as a question mark until the final two games when he defeated ranked Mississippi State and
LSU teams to pull out another winning record and another bowl appearance.
In the
2001 season the Razorbacks started off poorly with three straight losses in SEC play. They then came back to win six of the last seven including highly ranked
South Carolina and
Auburn teams. Based on this performance the Razorbacks were selected to return to the Cotton Bowl to face the defending National Champion
Oklahoma Sooners. The Razorbacks lost to Oklahoma in a low-scoring affair.
In
2002 Nutt's Razorbacks stumbled midway through the season and were forced to pull together five straight wins, including a last second miracle play against LSU, to pull out a share of a Western Division Title that was up for grabs due to the ineligibility of division-leading
Alabama. Arkansas made a poor showing against
Georgia in the
SEC Championship Game and ended the season with a disappointing loss to
Minnesota in the
Music City Bowl.
In
2003 Nutt's team stampeded to a 4-0 record including an overpowering performance against #5 Texas on their home field. The early season success raised fans expectations sky-high and put Nutt under intense pressure when the Razorbacks lost their next three games putting them out of contention for the National Championship or even the SEC Western Division crown. The Razorbacks won 4 of their last 5 games and defeated
Missouri in the
Independence Bowl. After the 2003 season,
Nebraska was widely seen as courting coach Nutt to be their head coach, after the firing of
Frank Solich.
The
2004 and
2005 campaigns were widely expected to be rebuilding years, due to very young teams (a "young team" is one that relies heavily on
underclassman, such as
freshman and
sophomores). The 2004 season ended with a 5 win - 6 loss record, and the team ended the year without a bowl invitation for the first time under Coach Nutt (since 1998, 6 straight bowls). After the 2004 season, it was highly rumored (LSU denies any flirtation) that
LSU offered coach Nutt a head coaching job after
Nick Saban left the Tigers for the
NFL team the
Miami Dolphins.
The
2005 season was also a rebuilding year as expected. Tough losses to the
USC Trojans (score: 70-17) as well as to
Vanderbilt and
South Carolina showed that the season had been predicted accurately. The team was ineligible for a bowl for the second season in a row (and the second season overall under coach Nutt). This led to
Arkansas Razorback fans calling for coaching changes. After meeting with
Frank Broyles (athletic director) after the conclusion of the season, coaching changes were made by Nutt in the offseason, the most notable of which was the addition of
Gus Malzahn (previously head coach at Springdale High School in
Springdale, Arkansas) as
offensive coordinator. Also notable in the offseason were the signing of several highly recruited in-state players, including Springdale High School
quarterback Mitch Mustain and
wide receiver Damian Williams.
As of 2005 the Razorbacks had the best overall record in the SEC Western Division and the best home record in the SEC during Nutt's tenure. They were only one of three SEC schools to play in three New Year's Day bowls in the last five years and the only SEC Western Division team to go to five consecutive bowl games.
Nutt's teams have been noted for a series of overtime games including the two longest overtime games in NCAA history. His teams have also made several record-setting comebacks which are unusual for teams that rely primarily on the running game.
Off the field, Nutt's players have been named to the
SEC Academic Honor Roll 83 times and he has established a reputation as a responsible coach academically.
Criticism of Nutt has come occasionally in the past for a lack of discipline on his teams and a number of his student-athletes have had off-campus arrests for
DUI and other offenses. Also, some criticism has come for an
SEC win record of below 50% and because he calls his own offensive plays during a game instead of relying on an
offensive coordinator (this changed during the 2005 post season when he hired Gus Malzahn as offensive coordinator).
Record and Bowl Games Chart
Head Coaching Career| Season | School | Record | Pct. | Bowl | Notes | | 1993-94 | Murray State (Div I-AA) | 4-7 | 36.4% | N/A | First year head coaching. |
| 1994-95 | Murray State | 5-6 | 45.5% | N/A | Personnel changes. |
| 1995-96 | Murray State | 11-1 | 91.7% | N/A | National I-AA coach of the year. Conference coach of the year. |
| 1996-97 | Murray State | 11-2 | 84.6% | N/A | Team wins first playoff game ever. Conference coach of the year. |
| Murray State Total | Murray State | 31-16 | 70.0% | |
|---|
| 1997-98 | Boise State | 5-6 | 45.5% | none | Improved previous years 2-10. Beat rival Idaho. |
| Boise State Total | Boise State | 5-6 | 45.5% | |
|---|
| 1998-99 | Arkansas Razorbacks | 9-3 | 81.8% | Citrus Bowl | Share of SEC West division title. Ended year ranked 16th. |
| 1999-00 | Arkansas Razorbacks | 8-4 | 66.7% | Cotton Bowl | Defeated Texas 27-6 in bowl. Finished ranked in top 20. |
| 2000-01 | Arkansas Razorbacks | 6-6 | 50.0% | Las Vegas Bowl | Ended regular season beating 2 ranked teams (Miss St., LSU). |
| 2001-02 | Arkansas Razorbacks | 7-5 | 58.3% | Cotton Bowl | Won six of last seven season games. |
| 2002-03 | Arkansas Razorbacks | 9-5 | 64.3% | Music City Bowl | Made it to SEC title game. |
| 2003-04 | Arkansas Razorbacks | 9-4 | 69.2% | Independence Bowl | Beat #5 Texas, started 4-0. |
| 2004-05 | Arkansas Razorbacks | 5-6 | 45.5% | none | Widely seen as rebuilding years for this and next year.[1] |
| 2005-06 | Arkansas Razorbacks | 4-7 | 36.4% | none | Widely seen as rebuilding year.[2] Tough losses to USC, Vanderbilt, S. Carolina [3] |
| Razorbacks Total | Arkansas Razorbacks | 57-40 | 58.8% | |
|---|
| Overall Total | N/A | 93-62 | 60.0% | |
|---|
Salary
Houston Nutt's current total salary (including media contract,
endorsements, etc.) is approximately $1.5 million per year, and currently goes through the year 2011.
External links
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HoustonNutt.com - The Official Site for Houston Nutt
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HogWired.com - Bio for Houston Nutt
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CallTheHogs.com - Razorback News, Blog, & Messageboard
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RabidHogFans.com - Rick B's Board
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WooPigSooie.net - Multimedia and News
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Hogville.net - Razorback Messageboard
*
HogCall.com - Razorback News and Messageboard.
*
The Razorback Legacy - Razorback football information and discussion board.
*
Woopig.net - Razorback site and Messageboard
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Razorbackonline.com - Razorback site and messageboard
Reference
*Adapted from Internet-Encyclopedia article "Houston Nutt"
