EDIT: Kendal Briles has been officially named offensive coordinator at Arkansas (3:03 p.m. update, 12/23/19).

Wess Moore of The Zone on 103.7 The Buzz out of central Arkansas says his sources say Florida State offensive coordinator Kendal Briles will take on the same role for the Arkansas Razorbacks.

There has been a great deal of smoke surrounding the possibility of Briles at Arkansas for some time, starting with him being spotted at a dinner at Doe's Eat Place on Dickson Street in Fayetteville with new Razorback head coach Sam Pittman in mid-December.

"Hey, it appears like Arkansas has a new offensive coordinator," Moore said coming out of a break in the first hour of the show Monday morning. "My sources are telling me Kendal Briles will be Arkansas' next offensive coordinator. Now, it's not a done deal. You know, until this thing is signed, sealed, delivered there's a chance it could break apart and you could have some kind of disagreement, but it does appear as Kendal Briles is going to be Arkansas' next offensive coordinator. I was talking to another source in the break, and he was like, 'Yeah, this looks like it's going to happen.' So, there you go. I think Arkansas has their man, Kendal Briles."

There has been no official release from the University of Arkansas on Briles.

THE BRILES FILES

Briles took over as FSU’s offensive coordinator prior to this season. The Seminoles finished the regular season with a record of 6-6 and 4-4 in Atlantic Coast Conference play. They will play Arizona State in the Sun Bowl on Dec. 31 in El Paso. If past hires are any indication (like with John Chavis at Arkansas previously), Briles would not be announced -- if he is the hire -- before the bowl game.

The Seminoles scored 29.1 points per game this season under the direction of Briles, good for eighth-best in the ACC. They only rushed for 133.75 yards per game, but they were fourth in the conference in terms of passing yards with 269.4 yards per contest through the air.

FSU fired head coach Willie Taggart less than two years into his tenure on Nov. 3. The Seminoles hired former Memphis head coach Mike Norvell to replace Taggert on Dec. 7. Norvell added former Auburn offensive coordinator Kenny Dillingham to his staff, leaving Briles without a job.

Last season, Briles was the offensive coordinator, associate head coach and quarterback coach at Houston. With Briles leading the offense, the Cougars became one of the most explosive teams in the nation. They averaged 43.9 points per game, which was the best in the American Conference and fifth in the country. Houston was one of three FBS teams to rank in the top 25 in rushing and passing yards. However, the Cougs only went 8-5 on the year.

Houston quarterback D'Eriq King was virtually unstoppable in Briles’ offense. He was responsible for 50 touchdowns, which was an American Conference single-season record despite only playing 10 games. He threw for 36 touchdowns and rushed for 14.

During Briles’ one year under Lane Kiffin at FAU as the OC, the Owls’ offense ranked sixth in the country in terms of rushing offense. They ran for an average of 285.3 yards per contest. Florida Atlantic went 11-3 and won its first Conference USA Championship. Their 40.6 points per contest were the eight-most in the nation.

Briles began his coaching career at Baylor in 2008 as an inside receivers coach and offensive recruiting coordinator under his father Art Briles. He stayed in the position until 2012 when he added passing game coordinator to his title. Eventually, in 2015, he was promoted to offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach.

During his first season as an OC for the Bears, he became a finalist for the Broyles Award. Baylor’s offense led the country in points per game (48.1 p.p.g.) and yards per game (616.2 y.p.g). The next season in 2016, Baylor led the Big 12 in rushing offense, gaining 326.7 rushing yards per contest.

Briles was a safety at Texas during his playing days after putting together a high school career that resulted in a 2014 induction into the Texas High School Hall of Fame. He later transferred to Houston, where he grabbed 70 receptions for a total of 780 yards as a wide receiver.

Coaching Stops

2008-11: Baylor (IWR/ORC)

2012-14: Baylor (PGC/WR/RC)

2015-16: Baylor (OC/QB)

2017: Florida Atlantic (AHC/OC/QB)

2018: Houston (AHC/QB/OC)

2019: Florida State (OC/QB)