Texas A&M Football: Division Rival Retaining Troubled Head Coach

Rival of Texas A&M football retaining HC after disappointing two-season run

When Arkansas beat Texas A&M football in 2021, Hog fans proclaimed a changing of the guard in the SEC West. Sam Pittman, the second-year head man who had previously worked in both Fayetteville and Athens as an offensive line coach, had finally returned the Hogs to their proper place above the Aggies—or, at least, that’s how the cardinal-clad fans saw things.

Fast forward to today, and the complexion of the Arkansas program is far different. After ekeing out a 7-6 record last year—which saw a loss to the worst Texas A&M football team of the last decade—the Hogs are currently sitting at a disappointing 4-7 record and staring a visit from a top-10 Missouri squad square in the face. In the midst of what will more than likely end up as a 4-8 season with an overtime victory over Florida as their only conference win, Arkansas AD Hunter Yurachek recently announced the following:

One also must wonder to what degree the powers that be at Arkansas are loathe to compete with Texas A&M football in a concurrent head coaching search.

Pittman has been a beloved figure in the Arkansas program for at least his first three years, but that sentiment has begun to sour during this down stretch.  In the last two years, he is 11-13 after a 9-4 2021 season that felt to Hog fans as though they were turning the corner. That 2021 season was supposed to be a stepping stone for the Arkansas program, but instead it turned into what is in hindsight a faint highlight for the Pittman tenure unless the head Hog can turn things around quickly. The Hogs avoid Alabama next year, but they do visit Oklahoma State, have the Southwest Classic against Texas A&M football, and host LSU, Ole Miss, Tennessee, and Texas.