Kerwin Bell would be an off-kilter offensive coordinator hire

It also might be just the swing-for-the-fences move Sam Pittman and the Razorbacks need

What Sam Pittman chooses to do with his next offensive signal-caller is going to dictate the rest of his tenure in Fayetteville. Pittman bringing Kerwin Bell in as Arkansas’s offensive coordinator might be just what he needs to get his program back on track.

You should know something about me: I’m okay with things getting a little kooky. I’m totally comfortable being uncomfortable. I’ll try anything if there is a chance it could have a big payoff.

History is littered with pioneers who saw their imagination as the only limit to their worldly possibilities. Mountain Dew is a great soda as is. Literally no notes. Then, one day, someone said, “You know what this beverage needs? A little something I call Baja Blast.” That person was a visionary.

Thinking outside the box might save Pittman’s job.

Today, I am coming to you with a similar such creative proposal. Bell is the Baja Blast for Pittman’s Mountain Dew.

If you’re wondering, “Where do I know that name from?” Well, it could be any number of places. Bell played quarterback at Florida in the 80s and had professional stints in both the NFL and CFL, including a game coming off the bench for the Indianapolis Colts in 1996 where he went 5-5 for 75 yards and a touchdown.

You might also remember his name because he is currently the head coach of the FCS school Western Carolina. The very same Western Carolina team that Arkansas beat 56-13 in War Memorial Stadium to open the season.

So why would Bell leave his head coaching position to be an offensive coordinator? And why would Pittman bring in a coach he beat?

Why Bell would consider the move

Let’s start with why Bell would consider the move to Fayetteville because that probably seems like the more obvious conclusion. Who wouldn’t want to coach in the SEC?

Status: Bell has had one season as an FBS coach. He served as Charlie Strong’s offensive coordinator at South Florida during the 2019 season. Strong was fired that offseason, so coming into another potential lame duck situation might scare him off. The difference is that Bell—who is 58—would finally be getting an opportunity for a major coaching role in the conference he played in.

Money: Bell currently has a base contract of $269,063, according to OpenPayrolls. That is pennies on the dollar compared to what Dan Enos made as offensive coordinator at Arkansas. What might be considered a modest salary for an SEC offensive coordinator would be a significant raise for Bell. Would something like $450,000 per year, which would keep costs down for the Hogs, be enough to get him to Fayetteville?

Family Ties: This one might the most important. You see, Bell’s offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach at Western Carolina is his son, Kade Bell. Could Kerwin view this as an opportunity to get his son a promotion at the same time? Maybe Kade gets promoted to head coach at Western Carolina after he leaves. Maybe Kerwin’s title at Arkansas is Associate Head Coach/Offensive Coordinator and Kade gets a promotion to quarterbacks coach in the SEC.

Why Pittman and the Razorbacks would consider the hire

Experience: Pittman needs someone with head coaching experience on his staff. Bell would bring 15 years as a head coach with stops at Jacksonville, Valdosta State, and Western Carolina along with him.

Proven Success: This arguably matters more than just having experience. Bell is 104-55 in his career as a head coach. He won the 2018 Division II National Championship at Valdosta State. More importantly, he got Western Carolina back to a winning record by year two, and has them in the FCS playoffs this season.

Changing Position Coaches: Bringing in a new offensive coordinator who is running a different system could be the chance for Pittman to make a clean break with some positional coaches who need to be released. I’m looking right at you Cody Kennedy.

Balanced Offensive Firepower: Here are Western Carolina’s national FCS ranks on offense this season:

• 2nd in Passing Offense

• 25th in Rushing Offense

• 3rd in Scoring Offense (38.9 points per game—keep in mind that’s with scoring just 13 points against the Hogs)

• 1st in Total Offense

That kind of offensive output—regardless of your division—is worth some attention. And while the offense is pass-first, there is still some balance in the playcalling. Western Carolina ran 70 plays against Arkansas in the season opener, 40 pass and 30 run.

While the old school powers that be love to dominate the running game, they would get behind Bell’s offense if it produced anywhere near the same results as it did for Western Carolina this year. We’re also not talking air raid here. I think everyone would be fine with a successful offense even if it threw the ball 60 percent of the time.

There have been thousands (I dunno, probably?) of Mountain Dew varieties. Admittedly, this hire is out there enough to potentially be another Major Melon or Livewire or Voo-Dew.

But maybe…just maybe…it’ll be Baja Blast, which is exactly the soda Pittman needs.