It’s Time To Acknowledge Sam Pittman Is Building A Winner At Arkansas
Life is all about expectations. I live by the Ricky Bobby method on most things. However, if we really take a step back and think about things; the SEC is HARD. In the current college football landscape, we all need to do a better job at recognizing things that are being built the right way. You can think whatever you want about Sam Pittman but it’s time to acknowledge he’s building a winner at Arkansas.
So what if Pittman has some weird vibes to him. The Yessir!!! stuff might be weird but this guy is winning and more importantly building a culture. Sam Pittman should be celebrated today. He may never go full Ricky Bobby mode and top Nick Saban but what he’s doing matters. Arkansas is clearly the third SEC power as of now and that should be celebrated.
Think about the transformation this program has undergone since Pittman arrived. The Hogs had a TWENTY game losing streak in the SEC before Pittman got them back on track. Now look at where Arkansas is. Texas A&M can’t beat Appalachian State. Brain Kelly is the butt of the joke at LSU (for the time being). Auburn is still in the toilet. Billy Napier may figure it out at Florida but that’s going to take time yet based on what we saw last week.
In a loaded conference that’s about to add Texas and Oklahoma, Arkansas is clearly the third best program in the conference. It matters. Seriously, look around. I keep eating the cheese on Jimbo Fisher and that guy always finds a way to botch it. Ed Orgeron might have won but he got exposed real quick. When are we going to take what Pittman is doing seriously?
Not only that, but there are just so many positive signs. Jalen Catalon has been lost for the season. An injury like that in the past would have been a crushing blow. Did anybody else see Arkansas last week? They’re better! Pittman has smartly taken advantage of the transfer portal. In years past, The Razorbacks would have never had access to a player like Drew Sanders. Now that kind of guy is on the team and thriving.
In years past, someone like KJ Jefferson would have never developed into the player he’s turned out to become. In the win over South Carolina, Arkansas ran the ball 65 times totally controlling the time of possession and line of scrimmage. Winning guys over like Jadon Haselwood over in the portal matters.
Players want to play for him. Players are buying into their culture. More importantly, they always look better than they did the week before and there is a clear defined progression. Who knows what the rest of the year looks like for Arkansas? I’m not saying they are title winners but that team can compete with any team in the country on any given week. If you’re a fan of that program, that is all you can ask for.
This is only Pittman’s third year on the job. What’s going to happen five years from now? Are you starting to get it now?
Erase the goofy labels from Sam Pittman. He’s more than a weird former offensive line coach at Georgia. Pittman has proven he would run circles around someone like Matt Luke. Give Sam Pittman his damn respect because that Arkansas program deserves to be celebrated.
