Sam Pittman was already under significant scrutiny before his Thursday afternoon press conference. However, the Arkansas head coach further worsened his position by delivering an impassioned defense of his program’s NIL budget amid an ongoing wave of players entering the transfer portal.
His justification backfired spectacularly.
At 63, Pittman just wrapped up his fifth regular season leading the Razorbacks, with a record that includes two fewer wins than losses. Over the last two seasons, Arkansas has gone 10-14.
Despite mounting calls for Pittman’s dismissal in recent months, athletic director Hunter Yurachek opted to grant him another chance. That decision is already proving to be a gamble.
Since early December, more than 25 players have entered the transfer portal, with many leaning toward rival SEC programs. On Friday, standout offensive lineman Patrick Kutas committed to Ole Miss.
Fans in Fayetteville are fed up. A large amount of Razorbacks wanted Pittman gone before his roster completely imploded. That number has only increased over the last seven days. They even leaked Yurachek’s phone number to bombard him with texts asking him to fire their lame duck head coach.
Meanwhile, Pittman was asked to explain why so many players are leaving. He made it abundantly clear that NIL funds are not the problem. Arkansas is not getting out-bid by programs with more money.
On one hand, it is very good news that the Hogs are able to compete financially. On the other hand, it is very bad news that money cannot keep current players in the system.
Arkansas lost approximately one quarter of its roster to the transfer portal even though the players who left are not getting more money to play elsewhere. They just wanted to leave to leave.
Leave a Reply