Eastern football head coach Bob Spoo filled the last major hole in his coaching staff Wednesday.

The Panthers announced former Dallas Cowboy offensive lineman Mark Hutson as their new offensive line coach.

Spoo said Hutson’s official tenure at Eastern will not begin until July, but Hutson has volunteered to help the Panthers with their spring practices.

“We’re very fortunate at this point in time to get him,” Spoo said. “He’s just a great find. He knows how to play the game and he’s a bright and intelligent individual.

“So much takes place when the players come off the field and I think he will have the answers for those guys when they come to the sidelines,” Spoo said.

Hutson was a two-time All-American for the University of Oklahoma, was drafted in the third round of the 1988 NFL Draft and spent two years with the Cowboys.

He graduated from Oklahoma in 1989. He did graduate study at Oklahoma and the University of Arkansas.

He started his coaching career in the Ohio Valley Conference, from 1993-96 he was the tight ends coach/special teams coordinator at Murray State. In 1997, he was the special teams and recruiting coordinator at Boise State, and in 1998-99 he returned to Arkansas as the tight ends coach and special teams coordinator.

As the Razorbacks coach, Hutson was named Southeastern Conference Special Teams Coach of the Year. He helped the Razorbacks reach the Citrus Bowl in 1998 and the Cotton Bowl in 1999.

Hutson’s was most recently the offensive line coach and student-athlete academic liaison at the University of Tulsa for the past three years.

During his playing career with the Sooners, Hutson was a member of the 1985 national championship team, which made four consecutive appearances in the Orange Bowl (1985-88).

He was a three-time All-Big Eight selection (1985-87) and team captain his senior year when he was chosen to play in the 1988 Hula Bowl all-star game in Hawaii.

Hutson’s wealth of experience was not the only reason he was considered by the Panthers. Spoo said he was also recommended by Eastern’s former offensive line coach, Steve Farmer who left after this past season to take a position at Eastern Michigan University, and former offensive coordinator Roy Wittke, who left to take a job with former Murray State head coach Houston Nutt at Arkansas.

Offense was not a problem for the Panthers the past two season, but with a new offensive coordinator, John Carr, and the loss of Walter Payton Award winning quarterback Tony Romo, tail back J.R. Taylor, wide receiver Will Bumphus and other starters, the Panthers will have a young offense next season.

“That all remains to be seen (if the young team will hurt the Panthers),” Spoo said. “We have a lot of spring practice to go yet, but we have a good staff. We won’t know until the fall, but I think we will be ready, and I think our staff will get us prepared for it.”