Arkansas hires Travis Williams as new defensive coordinator

Arkansas officially hired former UCF defensive coordinator Travis Williams to the same role under head coach Sam Pittman, according to a team release. Williams spent the last two seasons with the Knights as their DC under former Auburn coach Gus Malzahn. On3’s Matt Zenitz first reported the move over the weekend.

“𝙊𝙪𝙧 𝙣𝙚𝙬 𝘿𝘾… welcome @T_WILL4REAL!!!,” Arkansas football tweeted.

Under Williams, the Knights improved from eighth in the AAC in scoring defense in 2020 to third each of the last two seasons. It led to him being selected as a nominee for the Broyles Award, given to the nation’s top assistant coach, each of the last two years.

As a player at Auburn, Williams was a two-time All-SEC linebacker, earning all-conference recognition in both 2004 and 2005.

Arkansas finished the 2022 regular season 6-6 in a down year compared to last fall. The Razorbacks will conclude the year in the Liberty Bowl against Kansas Dec. 28.