TAT: Long Concludes Eight-Month Search

This article originally appeared in the December 6, 2012 issue of The Arkansas Traveler.

     For nearly eight months, UA athletic director Jeff Long searched for a new head coach at Arkansas.

     He found his man in Wisconsin head coach Bret Bielema. Although rumors of everything from ESPN’s Jon Gruden, to Boise State’s Chris Petersen, to LSU’s Les Miles were swirling, Long kept his search quiet.

     Long credits Chancellor David Gearhart, President Donald Bobbitt and the members of the Board of Trustees for allowing him to do so.

     “The thing that meant the most to me was that they entrusted me to carry out this process, and that trust meant everything to me,” Long said. “I kept them informed, but they allowed me to do my job. That’s all an athletic director can ask of those above him.”

     Senior Associate Athletic Director Jon Fagg, CFO Clayton Hamilton and Associate Athletic Director for Academics Eric Wood were also “critical” to the search, Long said.

     While looking for a new coach to lead the Razorbacks, he wanted whoever it was to have certain characteristics.

     The new coach needed to have a “passion for success and be able to embrace the passion of (the Arkansas) fan base,” Long said.

     Long also wanted a coach with “honesty, integrity and class.”

     “There is no question that our new head football coach embodies all of these characteristics,” Long said. “He also brings a commitment to impacting the lives of the student-athletes he works with.”

     For Bielema, the ball started rolling last Sunday, the day following him leading Wisconsin to a 70-31 victory over No. 14 Nebraska in the Big Ten Championship Game.

     After not getting back to his hotel room until 1:30 in the morning, he had a conversation with Fagg Sunday morning. Bielema agreed to meet with Fagg and Long in New York City while he was there for the College Football Hall of Fame induction ceremony.

     “Late Sunday night I went back to the hotel, thought about it, processed it, and met with Jeff (Long) again on Monday morning,” Bielema said. “I saw (Wisconsin athletic director) coach Barry Alvarez about 11:30, then at 2:30 I was in the air flying to Madison. It happened very quickly.”

     Rumors of other coaching prospects were still circulating until late Tuesday afternoon, when news of Bielema being hired leaked out.

     Both Long and Bielema are happy with the way everything turned out.

     “This (search) was pretty interesting because it’s lasted almost eight months,” Long said. “We’ve had quite a process.”