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FAYETTEVILLE — For the first time ever, Arkansas enters the 2020 season with a full-time coach dedicated solely to special teams.
New head coach Sam Pittman used one of his 10 assistant coach positions to bring Scott Fountain with him from Georgia to be the Razorbacks’ special teams coordinator.
In the past, there might have been one assistant who added that title to his normal job, but usually the duties were split up amongst several position coaches. Just last year, Barry Lunney Jr. held the title while also coaching tight ends.
During the Houston Nutt era, James Shibest coached the specialists, but was also in charge of tight ends or wide receivers. Perhaps the most famous example, though, was Ken Turner coaching Arkansas’ kickers for more than a decade - spanning the Frank Broyles, Lou Holtz and Ken Hatfield eras - while also leading the tight ends or offensive line.
That has been a common philosophy in college football through the years and Fountain even coached offensive linemen and tight ends earlier in his career, but he learned there were benefits to dedicating his entire time to special teams when Kirby Smart gave him that opportunity at Georgia.
“I've worked for schools that have split it up and what you find out is the linebackers coach cares about coaching the KOC, but linebackers are a lot more important,” Fountain said. “I was at Florida State and we did that there.
“The guy that was in charge of the kicker, punter, long snapper would coach the running backs and he just said, 'Hey, y'all go to the stadium. Y'all do your thing and come back.’”
Pittman got an up-close view of what a guy like Fountain can do for a football team when they worked together at Georgia. Last season, the Bulldogs had the No. 1 special teams unit in the country, according to the SP+ ratings created by ESPN’s Bill Connelly. The two years before that, they ranked 20th and 3rd.
On top of the Xs and Os impact, simply having a special teams coordinator emphasizes to the team the importance of that area.
“Our kids need to understand how important it is,” Pittman said. “To me, the only way you can put that down is if you've got a coordinator. Scott's assistant head coach and I think a lot of him, but I also feel like he's very important.”
Sometimes the forgotten phase of football, Fountain’s presence is already being felt on a team that has struggled on special teams the last few years.
The Razorbacks ranked 52nd and 66th nationally in special teams during Chad Morris’ two seasons, according to SP+ ratings, and were on the wrong end of multiple embarrassing plays that landed them on SportsCenter.
“I think one thing that really sets the tone is when Coach Pittman brought Coach Fountain over and we realized special teams is a third of the whole game,” linebacker Grant Morgan said. “Really in yardage it puts up just as much as offense and defense.”
Although Fountain is in charge of the entire operation, he will still employ the help of Arkansas’ other assistant coaches.
Wide receivers coach Justin Stepp, running backs coach Jimmy Smith, tight ends coach Jon Cooper, linebackers coach Rion Rhoades and defensive backs coach Sam Carter meet with Fountain for 20-30 minutes every day and then coach a particular aspect of special teams, such as the gunners on the punt coverage unit.
“I think you can really help your organization buy in,” Fountain said. “You can hold your coaches that help you on teams - just like offense and defense, I've got coaches that come in and help me on the practice field - more accountable as well and make sure they're doing a great job.”
Special teams aren’t as flashy as the offensive and defensive sides of the ball, especially outside of the returner and kicker positions, so getting all 11 players on the field to buy in is a major key to success in the third phase.
“That's one thing for a football team you really need is buy-in in all phases,” Morgan said. “Everyone says buy in to the head coach or the OC or DC - one thing we've really done here at Arkansas is we've bought in to special teams.”
Fountain has also preached that being able to play special teams is vital to those who have dreams of playing in the NFL. Several players have mentioned that, so the message seems to have gotten through to them.
Something else that should help the Razorbacks on special teams is that Fountain is an intense coach who demands perfection in practice. Morgan said he’s been yelled at for being out of position by just a couple of inches, which is something he appreciates.
Teammate De’Vion Warren, a wide receiver and kickoff returner who could be used on four special teams units, echoed Morgan’s sentiment.
“The thing about Coach Fountain, he wants your all every rep every play,” Warren said. “He wants you to be able to play multiple special teams and multiple special teams positions. He wants you to give 110 percent on those special teams.”
