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Ohio State assistant coach plucked by Arkansas after loss in Big Ten title game

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Ohio State assistant coach plucked by Arkansas after loss in Big Ten title game


The Ohio State Buckeyes are losing a key member of head coach Ryan Days’s staff to an SEC program, according to several reports.

Marcus Johnson, assistant offensive line coach for Ohio State in 2025, is set to move to Arkansas after only one year in Columbus.

In Fayetteville, Johnson will be reunited with newly appointed Razorbacks’ head coach Ryan Silverfield, for whom Johnson played with the NFL’s Minnesota Vikings in the 2008 season.

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Johnson’s departure is the second significant blow to Day’s offensive coaching staff, just a few days after former Ohio State offensive coordinator Brian Hartline was tabbed as the next head coach for the University of South Florida Bulls.

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Johnson reported directly to Buckeye’s offensive line coach Tyler Bowen during his lone season at Columbus. He also worked closely with assistant O-line coach Charlie Dickey and Football QC/offense Austin Fields on Coach Day’s staff.

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Johnson has previous SEC ties, as he was a second-team all-conference O-lineman for the Ole Miss Rebels from 2001 to 2004 before being selected in the second round of the NFL Draft by Minnesota in ‘05. He also had a brief stint playing for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers and the Hartford Colonials of the UFL.

Silverfield is also hiring Memphis Tigers’ assistant coach/offensive line Jeff Myers to team up with Johnson in taking command of the Razorbacks offensive line, after the previous offensive line coach — Eric Mateos — was informed that he was being let go by the new regime.

Before landing with the Buckeyes, Johnson spent two seasons coaching Purdue’s offensive line. His previous stops as a football coach include Duke (2016-2017), Mississippi State (2018-2019) and Missouri (2020-2022).

Now Johnson and Myers will take the reins of arguably Arkansas’ best unit, as the O-line for Arkansas was graded as the second best in the country by Pro Football Network.

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News of Johnson’s departure comes off the heels of the Buckeyes’ first loss of the season, a tight 13-10 affair in the Big Ten Championship Game against Indiana. Despite falling to the still undefeated Hoosiers, Ohio State is ranked No. 2 in the College Football Playoff bracket, meaning they still receive a bye in the first round. Hartline will continue to call offensive plays for the still defending National Champions Buckeyes in the CFP tournament, despite pulling double duty as he makes his first moves as the new man in charge at USF.





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Arkansas driver’s licenses and state IDs now available in Apple Wallet

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Arkansas driver’s licenses and state IDs now available in Apple Wallet


Arkansans can now present their driver’s licenses and state identification cards on mobile devices using Apple Wallet, state finance officials announced Wednesday.

The Department of Finance and Administration said Arkansans can use Apple Wallet to present their license or ID in person, online and in apps at select organizations, including at more than 250 Transportation Security



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Your Arkansas Driver’s License Can Now Live on Your iPhone

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Your Arkansas Driver’s License Can Now Live on Your iPhone


IDEMIA Public Security North America and the Arkansas Department of Finance and Administration’s Division of Driver Services and Motor Vehicles have launched Arkansas driver’s licenses and state IDs in Apple Wallet, allowing residents to securely store and use their credentials on an iPhone or Apple Watch.

The new feature gives Arkansans the ability to present their identification at participating businesses and venues, at Transportation Security Administration (TSA) checkpoints in more than 250 airports, and online or within apps when age or identity verification is required.

The launch builds on Arkansas’ ongoing efforts to expand digital identification options. In March 2025, the state introduced the Arkansas Mobile ID app, and officials say adding IDs to Apple Wallet offers residents another secure and convenient way to access their credentials.

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“We’re proud to build on our partnership with the Arkansas DFA’s Division of Driver Services and Motor Vehicles, expanding on the launch of the Arkansas Mobile ID app in March 2025. The launch of ID in Apple Wallet in the state provides Arkansas residents a new, secure way to store and present their digital credentials, with transparency and control over how their information is shared at the forefront,” said Rob Gardner, CEO, IDEMIA Civil Identity.

To add an Arkansas driver’s license or state ID to Apple Wallet, users can tap the plus sign at the top of the Wallet app on their iPhone, select “Driver’s License or State ID,” and follow the verification process.

Officials say privacy and security were central considerations in the rollout. Information stored in Apple Wallet is encrypted on a user’s device, and users control when and how their information is shared. When presenting an ID, only the information necessary to verify age or identity is provided.

Apple and the Arkansas Division of Driver Services and Motor Vehicles also do not receive information about when or where residents use their digital IDs.

The technology is also designed to make verification easier for businesses. Participating businesses can use IDEMIA’s Mobile ID Verify app to accept and verify mobile IDs directly from an iPhone without requiring customers to hand over their devices or use additional hardware.

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The launch marks another step toward broader adoption of digital credentials in Arkansas, giving residents a secure alternative to carrying a physical driver’s license or state ID while maintaining control over their personal information.

For information on the launch of IDs in Apple Wallet in Arkansas, click here.

READ ALSO: Adam O’Neal Stepping into Chancellor Role at UA-EACC



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Arkansas gymnatics coach Chris Brooks completes staff with hiring of Zan Jones | Northwest Arkansas Democrat-Gazette

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Arkansas gymnatics coach Chris Brooks completes staff with hiring of Zan Jones | Northwest Arkansas Democrat-Gazette


New Arkansas gymnastics coach Chris Brooks announced Monday the hiring of Zan Jones to complete his first staff, as well as the promotion of assistants Kyla Ross and Catelyn Branson.

Brooks succeeded his wife, Jordyn Wieber, on April 28 after Wieber stepped down.

Jones joins the Razorback after two seasons as an assistant coach at Texas Woman’s University in Denton, Texas. The Pioneers won back-to-back Women’s Collegiate Gymnastics National Invitational Championship titles in 2025 and 2026 with Jones on staff. He has been named a Women’s Collegiate Gymnastics Association Division II assistant coach of the year three times, including this spring.

Jones also earned Midwest Independent Conference assistant coach of the year in both of his seasons at Texas Woman’s.

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Jones served as the Pioneers’ primary vault and uneven bars coach, and the team set a program record of 49.35 on the bars in March.

An Alabama alumnus, Jones served as a student manager for the Crimson Tide gymnastics team. He served a year at Talladega (Ala.) College in its inaugural season of gymnastics and spent time as a recreational and team coach at Trussville (Ala.) Academy of Gymnastics.

Brooks also promoted both Ross and Branson to the title of associate head coach. Ross, a former UCLA gymnast and Olympic gold medalist as part of Team USA in 2012, started at Arkansas as a volunteer assistant in 2022. Ross helped Arkansas produce program records on the balance beam in back-to-back years before taking over the vault squad, which set a program high 49.675 in 2026. 

The Razorbacks ranked as high as No. 2 on the vault last season and were never lower than No. 7. Senior transfer Morgan Price landed the first 10 in school history on the vault in February.

Branson returned to the Arkansas staff ahead of the 2025 season, helping lead the floor squad. In that time, Branson has led the Gymbacks to two of their top five best floor scores ever and Arkansas has been ranked as high as No. 2 in the country on floor in the last two seasons. In 2026, over 60% of the team’s scores on floor were 9.85 or better.

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Branson served as Lindenwood’s head coach from 2022-24, where she was named 2024 Women’s Collegiate Gymnastics Association South Central Region Coach of the Year and the Midwest Independent Conference Coach of the Year. She led the Lions to their second consecutive and fifth overall USAG national championship and seventh MIC title in 2024.

Branson had a prior stint at Arkansas from 2020 to 2022, in which time the Gymbacks ranked as high as third on beam and second on floor.



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