Houston Dale Nutt Jr. (born October 14, 1957) is an American former college football coach and player. He formerly worked for CBS Sports as a college football studio analyst. Previously, he served as the head football coach at Murray State University (1993–1996), Boise State University (1997), the University of Arkansas (1998–2007), and the University of Mississippi (2008–2011).
Early life and family Houston Nutt Jr. was born in Arkansas, a distant descendant of Haller Nutt and member of the Nutt family, which is prominent in Southern society. He is the son of the late Houston Dale Nutt Sr., and Emogene Nutt and is the oldest of four children. Houston Nutt Sr. briefly played basketball for the University of Kentucky under Adolph Rupp before transferring to Oklahoma A&M (now Oklahoma State) in 1952. Nutt graduated from Little Rock Central High School.Allen, Nate. "Nutt resigns as Hogs' head coach", The Baxter Bulletin, November 27, 2007. Accessed November 27, 2007. "Broyles — who as coach recruited Nutt from Little Rock Central to the Razorbacks as a quarterback in 1976 — and White both lauded Nutt's accomplishments..." His parents taught at the Arkansas School for the Deaf at Little Rock, Arkansas, for 35 years. His father also served as athletic director and head basketball coach for the school. His father was inducted into the Arkansas Sports Hall of Fame in 2001. During his childhood, Houston and his brothers were daily members at the Billy Mitchell Boys and Girls Club in Little Rock.
Wife Diana, like Nutt, graduated from Oklahoma State University. The couple have four children together: Houston III (born March 11, 1987), twins Hailey and Hanna (born September 26, 1988), and Haven (born March 19, 1991).
Nutt's brother Dickey Nutt was the head basketball coach at Arkansas State University until he announced his resignation on February 19, 2008. He was also head coach at Southeast Missouri State of the OVC, before moving on to coach at Stetson University. He is now a special assistant coach at Cleveland State. His brother Danny Nutt served as the Assistant Athletics Director for Player Development at Ole Miss during Houston's tenure as head coach. Nutt's youngest brother Dennis Nutt, a former NBA player, is head men's basketball coach at Ouachita Baptist University.
College athletic career Nutt was the last player recruited by Arkansas head coach Frank Broyles before his retirement in 1976. Nutt was recruited as a drop-back-style quarterback and started four games as a true freshman after starting quarterback Ron Calcagni was sidelined with an injury. Nutt also played that year for the Southwest Conference champion Arkansas basketball team under coach Eddie Sutton, which went 26–2 and accomplished a 16–0 conference mark.
With the retirement of Broyles, Arkansas hired Lou Holtz as the head football coach. Holtz established an option offense that did not make use of Nutt's passing style and relegated him to the bench as a backup.Harris, Jim (May 31, 2007) . arkansassports360.com.
Disappointed by his lack of playing time, Nutt transferred to Oklahoma State University and played two years as a backup quarterback. During his time at Oklahoma State, he also played for the basketball team. Nutt graduated from Oklahoma State in 1981 with a degree in physical education.
Coaching career
Assistant coaching After graduation, Nutt became a graduate assistant at Oklahoma State under head coach Jimmy Johnson. In 1983, Nutt returned to Arkansas and became a graduate assistant coach under former coach Lou Holtz. In the spring of 1984, Nutt was hired by Arkansas State University as a full-time assistant coach, but he spent only four months there before returning to Oklahoma State that summer as a wide receivers coach.
Nutt spent six seasons as an assistant coach for receivers and quarterbacks at Oklahoma State and was promoted to offensive coordinator in 1989. During his years at Oklahoma State, he helped mentor running back Barry Sanders, who won the 1988 Heisman Trophy, and Buffalo Bills legend Thurman Thomas.
In 1990, Nutt returned to the University of Arkansas as an assistant under head coach Jack Crowe and established a reputation as an excellent recruiter. Nutt remained with the Razorbacks for three seasons and established relationships with Arkansas high school football coaches that would serve him in later years.
Murray State In 1993, Nutt received his first head coaching position at NCAA Division I-AA Murray State University. The team went 4–7 and 5–6 in Nutt's first two years.
In 1995, his efforts paid off with an 11–1 record and an Ohio Valley Conference championship after reeling off an 8–0 conference mark. Nutt received Ohio Valley Conference Coach of the Year honors and was recognized with the Eddie Robinson National Division I-AA Coach of the Year Award.
Nutt repeated his success for the 1996 season with an 11–2 record and another undefeated run through his Ohio Valley Conference schedule. Murray State won its first round Division I-AA playoff appearance, earning Nutt the OVC Coach of the Year honors and regional Coach of the Year honors.
Boise State Nutt made the step up to NCAA Division I-A the next year when Boise State University hired him to take over their program, which was the lowest ranked of 112 Division I-A schools and had posted a 2–10 record the year before. Two years after making the Division I-AA finals in 1994, the Broncos had an interim head coach in 1996 as head coach Pokey Allen battled cancer. Boise State's first year in Division I-A had been difficult; the school was looking for a recruiter and motivator to jump start their program following Allen's death in late December.
Nutt's team posted a 5–6 record in 1997, playing at the Division I-A level with its Division I-AA players. Nutt's team beat rival Idaho on the road in overtime for the first Boise win in Moscow, Idaho, since 1981. Additionally, Boise State almost pulled off an upset against Wisconsin of the Big Ten, losing 28–24.
Arkansas Nutt became the head coach of the University of Arkansas Razorbacks on December 10, 1997, succeeding head coach Danny Ford. Nutt, during his first press conference as coach, immediately mentioned a national championship as his goal and felt that Arkansas had the program to win one. The Razorbacks had suffered through a low period under a succession of head coaches in the previous years, having only received two bowl game bids in the eight seasons prior to Nutt's arrival.
Upon his arrival at Arkansas, Nutt invigorated the Razorback fan base with his enthusiasm and high energy. Under Nutt, the Razorbacks were one of three SEC schools to play in three New Year's Day bowls within five years. Nutt's teams were noted for a series of overtime games including the two longest overtime games in NCAA history. Off the field, some of Nutt's players were named to the SEC Academic Honor Roll 145 timesHead Coach Houston Nutt – University of Arkansas Athletics. hogwired.com and he established a reputation as a responsible coach academically. Nutt received some criticism for a SEC win–loss record that was just barely over .500 and because he called his own offensive plays during a game instead of relying on an offensive coordinator. In his first six seasons, Nutt led the team to a bowl game each year and averaged eight wins per season.
1998 season In his first season as head coach, Nutt's Razorbacks were picked to finish last in the Southeastern Conference Western Division in 1998, but ended up with a 9–3 record and a share of the division title. The Razorbacks lost to the eventual national champion Tennessee Volunteers on Tennessee's home field after quarterback Clint Stoerner fumbled while trying to run out the clock. For their efforts, the Razorbacks received their first-ever invitation to the Citrus Bowl and ended the season ranked No. 16 after losing to Michigan, led by junior quarterback Tom Brady. Nutt was selected as the Football News' National Coach of the Year.
1999 season In 1999, Nutt's Razorbacks were picked to win the SEC Western Division, but suffered a series of setbacks during the season. They recovered to defeat #4 ranked Tennessee, getting revenge for the loss in Knoxville the previous season due to Stoerner's fumble, and Mississippi State to earn a Cotton Bowl Classic bid versus arch-rival Texas. The Razorbacks defeated Texas 27–6, becoming the first team to ever hold Texas to negative rushing yards in a bowl game. It was Arkansas' first bowl victory since the 1985 Holiday Bowl. The Cotton Bowl victory, which was the first college football game played in the 21st Century, propelled Arkansas into the top 20 to end the season, finishing (8–4).
2000 season The 2000 season saw the Razorbacks lose the core of their team and suffer a string of injuries, including season-ending injuries to all of the starting running backs, and injuries to three of their quarterbacks. The Razorbacks struggled throughout the season until the final two games, when they defeated ranked Mississippi State and LSU teams to pull out another winning record and a Las Vegas Bowl appearance. Arkansas lost to UNLV in that game, finishing (6–6).
2001 season In the 2001 season, the Razorbacks started off with a revenge victory over UNLV, but then suffered three straight losses in conference play. They then came back to win six of the last seven, including victories over ranked South Carolina and Auburn teams. Based on this performance, the Razorbacks were selected to return to the Cotton Bowl Classic to face the defending national champion Oklahoma Sooners. Arkansas lost, gaining only 50 yards of total offense and just six first downs. Nutt was named SEC coach of the year by the Associated Press and by the SEC coaches. Arkansas finished (7–5).
2002 season In 2002, Nutt's Razorbacks (9–5) stumbled midway through the season but rallied to pull together five straight wins, including a last second touchdown pass against LSU, often referred to as the "Miracle on Markham" to pull out a share of a Western Division title. Arkansas was defeated by the Georgia Bulldogs in the SEC Championship Game and ended the season with a loss to Minnesota in the Music City Bowl.
2003 season In 2003, Nutt's team started off with a 4–0 record including a win against #5 Texas in Austin (Arkansas' first victory at Texas since 1988) and a double overtime win over Alabama, which happens to be the last time the Razorbacks have won in Tuscaloosa to date.
The early season success raised fan expectations sky-high and put Nutt under intense pressure when the Razorbacks lost their next three games, to include controversial losses to Auburn and Florida, putting them out of contention for the national championship or even the SEC Western Division crown. The Razorbacks won four of their final five games and defeated Missouri in the Independence Bowl to finish with a record of (9–4). After the 2003 season, Nebraska was rumored to be courting Nutt to be their head coach, after the firing of Frank Solich.
2004 season The 2004 and 2005 campaigns were widely expected to be rebuilding years due to young teams. The 2004 season ended with a 5–6 record and without a bowl invitation for the first time under Nutt.
2005 season