Arkansas Rehires John L. Smith to Replace Bobby Petrino - East Idaho News
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Arkansas Rehires John L. Smith to Replace Bobby Petrino

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1 1 12%20Generic%20Football?  SQUARESPACE CACHEVERSION=1335288520724Banana Stock(NEW YORK) — In an effort to move on from the Bobby Petrino era and to provide the program with some consistency, the team has hired John L. Smith as their new head coach. Smith has signed a 10-month contract worth $850,000.

Smith previously coached at Arkansas with Petrino, Michigan State, Louisville, and Utah State. He most recently served as the special teams coach at Arkansas for three seasons. Four months ago, he left Arkansas to take the job at Weber State, his alma matter.

Smith will replace the recently fired Bobby Petrino after it was discovered that he was having an affair with Jessica Dorrell, an assistant he recently hired. All of this came out after an April 1 motorcycle crash in which Petrino initially failed to disclose to the University that Dorrell was with him during the time of the accident. Once athletic director Jeff Long learned about the incidents, he was fired.

“I think Jeff Long made a great hire,” Petrino said. “While there were several outstanding internal candidates, John L. brings a lot of head coaching experience to the table that will help Arkansas’ transition. He will unify the staff, the team and the Razorback fan base. I wish coach Smith, his staff, and Arkansas football team the very best.”

Smith, 63, has a career coaching record of 132-86.

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