Razorbacks add seven to support staff
FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. – The Arkansas Razorbacks have added seven new members to the team’s support staff, adding head athletic trainer Vince Blankenship, strength and conditioning coaches Cole Forney and Zach Reed, offensive analyst Christopher Browne, defensive analyst Demerick Gary, Director of High School Relations Che Hendrix and special teams graduate assistant Adam Dulka.
Blankenship joins the Razorbacks from West Virginia, where he had been a member of the Mountaineers’ athletic training staff since 2014 and the Assistant Athletics Director/Head Athletic Trainer for Football since 2019. He oversaw the athletics medical unit for the football team, including the day-to-day operation of the training room, rehabilitation and injury prevention. Blankenship has worked with the Jacksonville Jaguars and Detroit Lions in the NFL and at Georgia, where he earned his bachelor’s degree.
Forney was the Director of Sports Performance at Florida A&M for five seasons before becoming a member of the Hogs’ staff. He led all strength and conditioning efforts for the Rattlers after serving as a member of the Georgia strength and conditioning staff. He won three Division II national championships as a player at Northwest Missouri State, helping the Bearcats win a record-setting 38 consecutive games.
Reed comes to The Hill after spending 10 seasons as a player development coach for Georgia Tech’s football program. He also worked with the Yellow Jacket’s track and field squad beginning in 2011. Prior to his time at Tech, he was a high school coach at Kennesaw Mountain HS in Kennesaw, Ga. As a player, he was a four-year letterwinner at Tennessee Tech as a defensive lineman.
Browne coached the offensive line at Alabama State during the 2024 season and will assist with the Arkansas offensive line. Prior to spending a year with the Hornets, the Cleveland, Ohio native assisted the offensive line at Iowa during the 2023 campaign that saw the Hawkeyes win 10 games. He was recently named the 2024 FCS Offensive Line Rising Star by Our Coaching Network and has worked with the Houston Texans and Pittsburgh Steelers each of the last two years as part of the Bill Walsh Diversity Coaching Fellowship. Browne has also made coaching stops at Southern, Louisiana Tech and Division II programs Morehouse College and Lincoln University. As a player at Southern, he was a two-time FCS All-American left tackle.
Gary rejoins the Razorbacks having previously served as a graduate assistant for the Hogs during the 2021 season. The former SMU defensive lineman coached at Houston in 2022 as a graduate assistant before spending the last two seasons as the assistant defensive line coach at North Texas. He was named to Dave Campbell’s Texas Football 40 Under 40 list, honoring 40 rising coaches in the state of Texas under the age of 40.
Hendrix is a former high school head coach, most recently having served at Boerne (Texas) High School for seven seasons before joining the Hogs. He led the Greyhounds to a 71-19 record during his tenure, including a trip to the Class 4A-Division I state championship game in 2022. Prior to his stint at Boerne, Hendrix was the head coach at Frisco Heritage located just outside his hometown of Dallas.
Dulka makes the short trip from Arkansas Tech after serving as the Wonder Boys’ tight ends coach and equipment coordinator. He spent two seasons at Kent State as a graduate assistant, helping develop weekly game plans for the offense and special teams. As a player, he earned a scholarship with the Golden Flashes after originally walking on and became a fixture on special teams while also seeing time as a tight end and fullback.
