How Zach Arnett leans on experience of Mississippi State football staff he has assembled
When Mississippi State football kicks off its season against Southeastern Louisiana on Sept. 2, cameras will find coach Zach Arnett. They’ll find offensive coordinator Kevin Barbay. They’ll find defensive coordinator Matt Brock.
Among the trio, there are a combined three years of college experience at their current positions – all belonging to Barbay. Mississippi State, after former coach Mike Leach owned more than three decades of experience, appears to have one of the nation’s least experienced staffs.
However, that isn’t the case. Arnett, with the understanding of the youth atop his staff, ensured deeper down the line he found veterans to hire.
“There’s over 100 years of SEC coaching experience on the staff,” Arnett said last week. “I have many shortcomings, and I’ve got to hire a stable of guys around me who can make up for them. Fortunately, they’re there to help me out on a daily basis.”
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It started with retaining Tony Hughes as running backs coach. Hughes is in his second stint at MSU, but his coaching career stems back to 1985 with Philadelphia High School in Philadelphia, Mississippi. As he worked his way up the college ranks, Hughes primarily coached in the secondary.
However, with his ties to the state throughout the last three decades, maintaining him in any role was crucial for wisdom and recruiting.
“In terms of my discussions with full-time coaches, he was the first one I spoke to about the need to retain him here and how much assistance he could give me,” Arnett said.
Arnett also returned a pair of familiar faces to the program. Defensive line coach David Turner spent last season at Georgia Tech, but he returned to MSU for his third stint with the Bulldogs. His previous two (2007-09, 2013-15) saw him mentor the likes of Chris Jones, Fletcher Cox, Preston Smith and Pernell McPhee.
Turner’s ties to the SEC extend back to 1993 when he was at Kentucky. His career has featured stops at Florida, Texas A&M, Alabama, Vanderbilt, Minnesota, Virginia and NC State.
Senior offensive analyst Greg Knox joins Turner as another Arnett hire with ties to the Bulldogs. Knox’s coaching career stems back to 1989 when he was a graduate assistant at Northeastern State, and it has featured stops at Ole Miss, MSU and Florida in various offensive assistant roles.
Knox also served as MSU interim coach for the 2017 TaxSlayer Bowl following Dan Mullen’s departure to Florida.
Like Hughes, new offensive line coach Will Friend holds recruiting ties to the state thanks to his playing career at Philadelphia High School. A former Alabama standout, Friend has accrued about two decades of experienced capped by his previous two seasons at Auburn.
“I don’t know it all, and I don’t pretend to know it all,” Barbay said. “I think the important piece for an organization is that you don’t have a big ego.”
Stefan Krajisnik is the Mississippi State beat writer for the Clarion Ledger. Contact him at skrajisnik@gannett.com or follow him on Twitter @skrajisnik3.
This article originally appeared on Mississippi Clarion Ledger: Zach Arnett leaning on experienced staff for Mississippi State football
