BATON ROUGE — LSU defensive coordinator John Thompson has agreed to accept an offer to serve on the football staff at the University of Arkansas, head coach Nick Saban announced on Tuesday. Thompson informed Saban of his decision on Tuesday morning.
“This is a life-long dream of mine to coach at Arkansas,” said Thompson, who grew up in Arkansas and served as a graduate assistant for the Razorbacks. “This opportunity is about going home and about so many other intangibles for my children. I have family all over the state and this is an opportunity to go home.
“I am saddened by the timing of this decision because Nick Saban is a great man and a great coach,” Thompson said. “It is not meant in any way to reflect poorly on LSU. For goodness sakes, this is LSU, one of the great places in college football. But for me, this opportunity is all about going home.”
Thompson, whose hometown is Forrest City, Arkansas, went to Central Arkansas and has known Arkansas head coach Houston Nutt since childhood.
“John has made a decision that is important to his family, and we’re sorry to see him go,” Saban said. “Now we will hire at LSU a defensive coordinator who has the same long-term desire to help us re-build our program to national prominence. We will fill our position here with a person who is committed to LSU, the people of Louisiana and playing the kind of defensive football that will be exciting for all of us.”