'One of the great ones': Arkansas' Pittman revered for turning around Razorbacks

PROVO — The last time Arkansas coach Sam Pittman visited Utah, he made sure to pay a visit to LaVell Edwards Stadium, even though he didn't have the chance to go inside.

On Saturday afternoon (1:30 p.m. MDT, ESPN), the venerated offensive line coach and 34th head coach in Razorbacks football history will lead his squad into the stadium named for the former Utah State offensive lineman and college football legend against BYU, and he couldn't be more excited.

"I'm really excited to go to BYU," Pittman told local media in Fayetteville, Arkansas. "I've never been up there before for a game; I drove by the stadium once, but never went up there for a game. I know our team will be excited to play them."

The homecoming game, which will be the first between the BYU and Arkansas programs, has already been announced a sellout in the 63,470-seat stadium, with fans being urged to wear white instead of the traditional royal blue for a home game.

"I know our team will be excited to go up there and play," Pittman said. "It will be a really nice challenge for us. It will be kind of neat to go out of conference at this point right before the bye and go play."

Pittman has been revered for his culture change of an Arkansas program into something of a contender in the SEC West, one of the best divisions in college football that also boasts Alabama, LSU and Texas A&M. In just his second season, he led the Razorbacks to a 9-4 record and a win in the 2021 Outback Bowl before his squad jumped into the top 10 in the Associated Press poll this season prior to three-straight losses that included last Saturday's 40-13 loss to No. 16 Mississippi State.

Immediately after his arrival, Pittman's Razorbacks snapped a 20-game conference losing streak to immediately bolster the turnaround. He's also revered as one of the good people in college football, a coach who got emotional during his first press conference in Fayetteville and called the Razorback "the best mascot of all time."

"Arkansas is really good. Head coach Sam Pittman is one of the great ones; just a really good person," BYU coach Kalani Sitake said of the former Pittsburg State offensive lineman, where he was an NAIA All-America first-team selection. "I know a lot of people who worked for him and with him, and we've had some great exchanges. He gets it; he's one of the good guys in football, and obviously he does a great job leading his team.

"They've had some injuries, and I know they are looking forward to getting healthy again and playing this game."

Among those injuries is quarterback KJ Jefferson, who missed Saturday's game against Mississippi State due to a head injury. The 6-foot-3, 242-pound fourth-year junior who has thrown for 1,096 yards and nine touchdowns with just one interception was cleared to return to full practice this week.

As for Sitake, the respect is mutual from Pittman, who said he has come to know Sitake through American Football Coaches Association meetings and other Zoom calls and has been impressed by the former BYU fullback's demeanor and character.

"I have a lot of respect for him," PIttman said of Sitake. "The things that he talks about when he speaks in the head coaches' meeting, he's very, very intelligent. From everything I see, he's very positive. Obviously, he has a love for BYU.

"But I know this: For him to get Kingsley to come back from Oregon to BYU (after going in the transfer portal), I have high respect for Kingsley's family and they love him. I would think that's enough endorsement right there. I do believe that he is a fine, fine man and a helluva football coach."

Pittman is also a rare member of another coaching fraternity: those with offensive line backgrounds. The line coach has been a regular promoted interim head coach when an athletic director needs continuity amid a midseason or late season coaching change, but has been a head coach candidate on fewer occasions.

Of course, when members of the fraternity get an opportunity, they've risen to be among the best in the game — a group that also includes Iowa's Kirk Ferentz, Miami's Mario Cristobal, App State's Shawn Clark and Iowa State's Matt Campbell.

That's no surprise from those who know the game.

"Playing O-line is a whole different beast than any other position," BYU offensive lineman Harris LaChance said. "I can say that as an offensive lineman; it's a tough position in a lot of ways: mentally and physically every day. We also don't get a lot of credit, so it teaches you to put your head down in good and bad. That's one thing that makes a hard worker and a great man, just putting your head down and working and progressing."

BYU defensive lineman Caden Haws was recruited by Pittman when he was a center at Pulaski Academy in Little Rock. The Hogs never offered Haws a scholarship, but the 6-foot-2, 320-pound sophomore who also served a two-year mission for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in St. George kept Arkansas among a group of recruiting finalists that also included Auburn, Mississippi State, Utah and the service academies (as well as BYU and FCS Central Arkansas) largely because of Pittman.

"I think offensive line coaches are cerebral, smart guys. And that kind of coaching style is really good for a head coach," said Haws, who moved to defensive line after several long talks with BYU strength and conditioning coach Nu'u Tafisi. "I have the utmost respect for coach Pittman; he's a really good man. He's a players' coach, but he demands your respect as well. I love what he's done at Arkansas; he's definitely the right man for the job, and that's been evident since he was hired.

"I know everybody there loves him."

BYU knows exactly what it's getting with Pittman, Jefferson and the rest of the Razorbacks. And so do the Hogs as they try to snap a three-game losing streak in a SEC road game west of the Rocky Mountains.

"They throw it all over the place, so that will be a huge challenge for us," said Pittman, who singled out BYU quarterback Jaren Hall and wide receivers Gunner Romney and Puka Nacua. "We're going to have to have a little more ball control and run the football. We've got to get better there.

"Our goal coming in was to go to a bowl game, and all those things are still ahead of us. I didn't say what bowl; we just want to go to the highest bowl we can. Our goals are still there."

Related topics