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Arkansas St. OC takes same position with Maryland
Maryland head coach D.J. Durkin has hired Walt Bell to be the Terrapins' offensive coordinator, the school announced Sunday.
FOX Sports reported Saturday the announcement was imminent.
Durkin called Bell "one of the brightest offensive minds in college football" in the announcement.
The 31-year-old Bell is in his second season as Arkansas State's offensive coordinator, play-caller and quarterbacks coach. Earlier this month, Bell turned down an offer from Louisiana-Monroe that would've made him the youngest head coach in the FBS.
In 2014, Bell's first season with the Red Wolves, the team -- relying on his fast-paced, spread scheme -- broke the school records for total offense (6,194 yards), average yards total offense (476.5 yards per game), total plays (1,024), points scored (477) and touchdowns scored (65).
This season, Arkansas State is No. 10 nationally in scoring at 41 ppg and No. 36 in total offense. The Red Wolves were one of only 13 FBS teams to produce more than 2,500 yards both running and passing in the regular season. More impressively, Bell's offense is averaging 49 points per game in eight Sun Belt games and 52 points in their past four games.
His QB, Fredi Knighten -- who had thrown only three TD passes in his career prior to Bell's arrival -- has thrown 43 TDs against just 14 INTs the past two seasons.
Prior to coming to Arkansas State, Bell also worked with Red Wolves head coach Blake Anderson at UNC and Southern Miss.
Former Michigan defensive coordinator Durkin took over the Maryland program a few weeks earlier. The Terps were No. 10 in scoring in the Big Ten and No. 9 in total offense.
Bruce Feldman is a senior college football reporter and columnist for FOXSports.com and FS1. He is also a New York Times best-selling author. His new book, “The QB: The Making of Modern Quarterbacks,” came out in October 2014. Follow him on Twitter @BruceFeldmanCFB and Facebook.
