Arkansas' Kendal Briles Officially Out of Race for Mississippi State OC Position

Head coach Zach Arnett will have to keep searching for an offensive coordinator for the Bulldogs.

Arkansas offensive coordinator Kendal Briles is no longer in contention to take the same position at Mississippi State next season. 

Although rumors have been swirling about the possibility of Briles joining head coach Zach Arnett's staff, the Razorbacks assistant has made it clear that he will not be taking a new job anytime soon. Briles posted a tweet announcing his decision to stay with Arkansas and quarterback KJ Jefferson on Thursday evening. 

Looking forward to 2023 with ⁦@kj_jefferson2⁩ ‼️ #Runitback ⁦@RazorbackFB⁩ pic.twitter.com/7oXScOIfDV

— Kendal Briles (@kendalbriles) January 6, 2023

Briles might be out of the picture, but Arnett has shown that he has what it takes to bring in talented assistants to back him up. The new head coach of the Bulldogs has already made some waves since taking over the program less than one month ago. 

Arnett first promoted linebackers coach Matt Brock to defensive coordinator on Wednesday after he successfully called plays in the team's 19-10 victory over Illinois in the ReliaQuest Bowl. Mississippi State's defense held the Fighting Illini to just 22 rushing yards and one touchdown in the contest. 

The coach also hired former staff member Brad Peterson and record-holding MSU wide receiver Chad Bumphis on Wednesday. Peterson will serve as the Associate AD for Football Administration, while Bumphis has been named the program's newest wide receivers coach. Bumphis held the same role at Utah in 2021 and 2022. 

More hires are expected to be made in the coming weeks as Arnett looks to get his program going in the right direction heading into the 2023 season.