His brother Danny Nutt served as the Assistant Athletics Director for Player Development at Ole Miss during Houston's tenure as head coach.

[citation needed] Nutt spent six seasons as an assistant coach for receivers and quarterbacks at Oklahoma State and was promoted to offensive coordinator in 1989.

During his years at Oklahoma State, he helped mentor running back Barry Sanders, who won the 1988 Heisman Trophy, and Buffalo Bills legend Thurman Thomas.

In 1990, Nutt returned to the University of Arkansas as an assistant under head coach Jack Crowe and established a reputation as an excellent recruiter.

Nutt remained with the Razorbacks for three seasons and established relationships with Arkansas high school football coaches that would serve him in later years.

[citation needed] In 1993, Nutt received his first head coaching position at NCAA Division I-AA Murray State University.

Boise State's first year in Division I-A had been difficult; the school was looking for a recruiter and motivator to jump start their program following Allen's death in late December.

Nutt, during his first press conference as coach, immediately mentioned a national championship as his goal and felt that Arkansas had the program to win one.

The Razorbacks had suffered through a low period under a succession of head coaches in the previous years, having only received two bowl game bids in the eight seasons prior to Nutt's arrival.

They recovered to defeat #4 ranked Tennessee, getting revenge for the loss in Knoxville the previous season due to Stoerner's fumble, and Mississippi State to earn a Cotton Bowl Classic bid versus arch-rival Texas.

The Cotton Bowl victory, which was the first college football game played in the 21st Century, propelled Arkansas into the top 20 to end the season, finishing (8-4).

The Razorbacks struggled throughout the season until the final two games, when they defeated ranked Mississippi State and LSU teams to pull out another winning record and a Las Vegas Bowl appearance.

Based on this performance, the Razorbacks were selected to return to the Cotton Bowl Classic to face the defending national champion Oklahoma Sooners.

Arkansas was defeated by the Georgia Bulldogs in the SEC Championship Game and ended the season with a loss to Minnesota in the Music City Bowl.

After meeting with Frank Broyles (athletic director) at the conclusion of the season, coaching changes were made by Nutt in the offseason at the risk of being fired, the most notable of which was the forced addition of Gus Malzahn, previously the head coach at Springdale High School in Springdale, Arkansas, as offensive coordinator.

However, early losses to Alabama and Kentucky knocked Arkansas out of the rankings and made the remaining SEC schedule an uphill struggle, even with Darren McFadden, Felix Jones, and Peyton Hillis in the Razorback backfield.

A non-official flyover was made hours before the Auburn home game with a small airplane towing a banner which read: "Fire Houston Nutt.

Three days after defeating LSU, Nutt resigned as head coach of the Arkansas Razorbacks amid several controversies and rumors, which had come prior to and throughout the 2007 season.

The 2007 team would go on to lose to Missouri in the 2008 Cotton Bowl Classic under interim head coach Reggie Herring, finishing (8-5).

It was announced on April 16, 2009, that Nutt and his wife, Diana, had committed to give a gift of $100,000 to Ole Miss, evenly divided between the university's indoor practice facility and the creation of student-athlete scholarships.

[7] After a 41–24 victory over border rival Memphis to open the season, the Rebels suffered a loss to the then-ranked Wake Forest Demon Deacons, 30–28, on a last-second field goal.

8 LSU, 31–13, in Baton Rouge, snapping a six-game losing streak to the Tigers, earning the Rebels an Associated Press ranking of No.

25, the first time in four years Ole Miss had been ranked, and putting them in position for a possible bid to the Cotton Bowl Classic in Dallas, Texas.

The Rebels went on to beat SEC West and in-state rival Mississippi State, 45–0, in the Egg Bowl to finish the regular season at 8–4.

4 in the AP Poll before losing their 2009 SEC opener, 16–10, on the road at South Carolina in a Thursday night game on September 24.

Ole Miss lost to in-state and SEC rival Mississippi State on November 28 in the Egg Bowl at Starkville, 41–27.

Ole Miss was picked to play in the Cotton Bowl Classic for the second year in a row, where they defeated Oklahoma State, 21–7, to end the season.

All four victories were vacated in 2019 as punishment for recruiting violations committed by members of Nutt's staff, leaving the team officially winless.

Two wins in non-conference play were vacated in 2019 as punishment for recruiting violations committed by members of Nutt's staff, leaving the team officially winless.

The NCAA’s Notice of Allegations dated January 22, 2016, did not name or implicate Coach Nutt in any misconduct, and it would have been inappropriate for any University employee to suggest otherwise.