Arkansas football: 5 ways the Hogs will measure success in 2020
Sometimes even the most carefully crafted fiction can’t compare to the wacky narrative of reality.
Such was the case during Arkansas’ final game of 2019. Looking to avoid back-to-back seasons without a conference victory, the Razorbacks entered the contest against Missouri 3 weeks removed from a 45-19 loss to Western Kentucky and the firing of coach Chad Morris.
Needless to say, they could have used a break.
Instead, several coaches and players were held out following an outbreak of mumps on campus. Trotting out walk-on quarterback Jack Lindsey for his first career start, Arkansas fell 24-14. The bizarre story seemed a fitting end to an ill-fated season.
A nearly monthlong coaching search led to Sam Pittman, a former Razorbacks associate head coach and offensive line coach who held the same titles at Georgia. Although not the flashiest hire, Pittman quickly has generated optimism around the program because of his recruiting prowess and experience coaching a position group that had been a major weakness for Arkansas of late.
Expectations will likely be tempered in his inaugural season. He inherits a program that won a combined 4 games in the past 2 years and hasn’t had a winning record since 2016.
When the Razorbacks talk of success in 2020, it should be in terms of developing a culture and making small improvements that set the tone for future seasons. Here are 5 things to look for next season:
1. The defense’s identity under Barry Odom
Only 6 FBS schools allowed more points per game than the Razorbacks (36.8) in 2019: UMass, New Mexico State, Connecticut, Louisiana-Monroe, Bowling Green and New Mexico. That’s not the company Arkansas wants to find itself in if it hopes to compete in the SEC.
By far Pittman’s biggest coaching hire, Barry Odom brings more head coaching experience than the man he will work under. He amassed a 25-25 record in 4 seasons at Missouri and was just weeks removed from being the Tigers’ coach when he accepted the defensive coordinator job at Arkansas. His experience could serve to benefit not only the players but also Pittman as he makes the transition to his first head coaching job.
The hire also stands out given Odom’s defensive track record. Missouri’s defense made improvements in each of his 4 years at the helm. The Tigers ranked among the top 3 in the SEC in yards and 1st downs allowed per game last season and among the top 5 in points allowed (Arkansas was last in all categories).
He takes over a defense that loses its leader in tackles (De’Jon Harris), sacks (McTelvin Agim) and forced turnovers (Kamren Curl). But it seems a fresh start could be what this group needs.
2. O-line improvement
Hire an offensive line coach and there will be certain expectations. The Razorbacks’ line was average at best in 2019. Rakeem Boyd rushed for 1,133 yards and 8 touchdowns, and it’s crazy to think how those numbers might have looked with better blocking.
In situations where it was either 3rd or 4th down with 2 or fewer yards to go, Arkansas got a 1st down only 68 percent of the time. That ranked 10th in the SEC and 85th overall. It was also met at the line of scrimmage or for a loss on 18.8 percent of its running plays.
Pittman seems equipped to fix these issues, though change might not come immediately.
He said in his introductory press conference that he can see himself running a lot of RPO in 2020, so the Hogs should have a healthy mix of run and pass. Still, given his experience, it’d be surprising not to see Arkansas take at least a small step forward this season.
3. Building a solid 2021 recruiting class
It seems to be the consensus that Pittman is a savvy recruiter. He helped Georgia secure top 3 recruiting classes (according to 247Sports) in each of the past 4 seasons, including the top class in 2018 and 2020. Meanwhile, Arkansas’ latest class ranked 11th just among SEC teams.
Pittman will certainly find it more difficult recruiting to Arkansas than Georgia – at least in the beginning – but he seems to have charisma and is good at developing relationships with players. The type of players he recruits also will be telling of what is to come. Pittman has stated that he believes in power football — more akin to Bret Bielema than Morris — but also recognizes Arkansas’ roster might not fit that system. If he can get bigger bodies, though, that might soon change.
4. Development of young players in the passing game
Florida grad transfer Feleipe Franks appears to be the favorite to win the starting job in 2020, but let’s not dismiss K.J. Jefferson.
Jefferson only played in 3 games as a freshman in 2019, allowing him to maintain redshirt status. A 4-star from Sardis, Miss., he has the speed that would best fit an RPO offense like Pittman talked about. It’s encouraging that his best game last season came against LSU, though he only went 7-of-14 for 105 yards.
Jefferson is important because he figures to be a big part of Arkansas’ plans going forward, but he is not the only young Razorback whose development will be crucial to monitor.
Treylon Burks and Trey Knox emerged as 2 of the top 3 receiving targets last year as freshmen. The 3rd – Mike Woods – was a sophomore. The growth of all 3 will be big for either QB. If Jefferson takes a leap, the Razorbacks’ aerial attack could look dangerous in the future.
5. Staying competitive in SEC games
Arkansas kept a few SEC games close last season, but they were outscored by an average of 22.5 points. They came within single digits only twice – against Texas A&M and Kentucky. They haven’t won an SEC game since 2017, and it’s very possible that streak is extended in 2020.
To expect the Razorbacks to begin competing again right away might be a bit too generous. One conference victory seems like a reasonable goal for 2020. Missouri and Mississippi State look like the best chances as of now. If the Razorbacks can win 1 of those and at least keep themselves in some other games, it will be something to build on heading into Pittman’s second year.
I know many Arkansas fans are not happy with this hire, but they should be. Pittman is a fantastic coach, and like Mario Cristobal and Ed Orgeron, he can be the next o-line coach to find success as a head coach, and that should not be surprising. O-line coaches need many of the same CEO skills a head coach needs, because even though they’re not coordinators, they touch every part of the offense and usually help out a lot with special teams, too.
Pittman’s ability to recruit is also a huge plus. He took a moribund Arkansas recruiting class and in three weeks bumped it up to 30th. Give him an entire cycle, and he should have Arkansas in the top-15 in the country, definitely the top half of the SEC. He will recruit Texas and Louisiana well, and will definitely have a pipeline to Georgia and Florida from those relationships he created the last four years.
He hired amazing coordinators that will use the talent there well. While I believe Franks is fools gold and likely won’t win the QB competition or if he does, won’t finish the season as the starter, Pittman’s willingness to use the portal for a quick talent infusion is a good sign.
With Bama and LSU both up, and Gus having Auburn in contention every few years, should Arkansas expect to win 10 games a year, every year? No. But 8-9 wins a year every year should be the standard, with the ability to compete for the division every third or fourth year.
Sam Pittman will get y’all there!
The fanbase is excited about the hire, but a decade of John L Smith, Bielema, chad morris took its toll on us
Corch is right. You guys have the right man for the job. Barry Odom as D-coordinator is a slam dunk too. Arkansas is definitely moving in the right direction.
I agree. It’s possible that if Pittman would have stayed at Arkansas when he left for Georgia, we may still have Bielema as our coach
Most of the Hog fans I run into are happy about the hire of Pittman and his staff. Arkansas isn’t a “flashy coach” home. I really think that Pittman wanted to be at the UofA and will do his best to remain there.
Since 2010 ths Hogs have had FIVE head coaches (Petrino, John L. Bert, Chad, and now Coach Pittman) several 180 degree turns in direction (Pro Passing Attack, SMILE, Ground and Pound, Right Lane Broke Down) and now, FINALLY what seems to be a head coach and staff that is designed to get the team to do what the players are best at doing. So many coaches preach style and system, but unless they have been there long enough to recruit players to match their specific system year in and year out, they must be able to adjust. Look at TCU, they don’t get the top recruits each year, but they adjust what they do based on what their team does best. That IMO makes a team harder to play against.
I’m ready to see a Razorback football team play solid fundamental football. We really haven’t seen that since Pittman left for Georgia. That is why the Hogs are on their third coach in four years.
I like the hire. I think in 2 or 3 years Arkansas will be 8-4 or so.
Here is your grain of salt, hillbilly.
Now, that right there is funny…a guy from Tennessee calling someone else a “hillbilly”.
It’s ok. You wouldn’t understand.
he justa said “Hillbilly” like it’s a (bad) thing?
I am a big Pittman fan and I fully believe he’ll reverse the fortunes of Arkansas. Reverse them into what? I don’t know. But I feel confident that he’ll at least have Arkansas finishing in the middle-of-the-pack of the SEC West, which is miles better than how things were going under Chad.
The SEC west is so ridiculous though. He’s competing against Saban, Malzahn, Orgeron, Kiffin, Leach, and Fisher. Which of those coaches do you think will be worse than Pittman?
Fortunately it’s not the coaches suiting up and heading on to the field to battle, so HC is just one element of a program. I think Pittman is a better recruiter than either Leach and Kiffin. And I think Pittman has assembled a very solid staff that understands the SEC well. All of which, in my opinion, should serve to lift Arkansas off the floor mat of the SEC West.
Oregron, Saban, and Gus aren’t going to win every game every year. Kiffin, Leach, and Fisher won’t either. I think we are on the cusp of a new era in the SEC, back where the top four are really good, but teams 5-12 are good too, and able to beat just about anyone on any given weekend.
When Pittman gets the roster rebuilt, I expect the Hogs to compete with all of those team. Some years they will win more, others they will win less. I’m tired of the 50-point BEATINGS where the team couldn’t compete at all, and were even out-classed by the other guys second and third string.
It does not have anything to do with coaches…it’s all about history…Alabama is the only one traditionally above the Hogs. Arkansas has consistently been competitive with the rest.
Arkansas eats what Missouri flushes.
Lol trolling hard this morning I see. My question is I get Arkansas football has been a joke lately but what in the hell has Missouri done on a football field that makes Missouri fans think they can talk that much smack. If your answer to that question is beating Arkansas you’re going to have to do better because that’s not an accomplishment.
Mizzou needs to win more games before they have room to talk.
That would make us high on meth.
What is it with you? You talk a ton of crap for a fan of a program that’s done nothing of significance in any sport. What has Mizzou won, ever, other than a few low-end bowl games? Arkansas has won National Championships in football, basketball and 40+ in track and field. I guess beating historically bad Arkansas teams a few times is enough for you. Pathetic.
If you need a history lesson, feel free to follow Wolfman. One thing I can promise you though is no one is ever impressed when you talk about how good you used to be. Arkansas “won” the championship by receiving votes in 1964. For comparison, Mizzou went undefeated in 1960. If we go back far enough, everyone was good at one point.
Wolfman isn’t the one on this thread talking smack lol. While I agree with you that history in sports doesn’t matter as much as the now I still have my question unanswered, what has Missouri done on a football field that warrants this much smack talk from their fan base.
We’ve been mediocre. Very average. Played in Atlanta twice, but we get dogged for bringing that up (even if it’s a response to people asking us what we’ve done). That isn’t impressive for some people, but at a school that recruits at the bottom of the conference, we think it’s a significant achievement.
The truth is that I don’t have any particular feelings about Arkansas, other than im annoyed with them constantly recruiting our recruits. But we’re “rivals”,so…
SDS readers know I don’t like to put programs down. Furthermore, i write a lot of respectful ideas about our Ozarkalypse Hog brothers. And in general success comes from promoting your whole football schedule. I also say, VERY IMPORTANTLY, “rivalries” make two teams worse at the same time, because every game is a 100% fight to the last second. Having a “rival” makes two rosters play 11 games with less intensity and anyone who doesn’t get that is an idiot.
If Sam Pittman succeeds it can only make Missouri even better. If he doesn’t it will only hurt Missouri for 1 game per year. Kiffin, Leach, Fisher, and Orgeron are over-rated. Mucchamp, Stoops, Smart, Mason, Mullen, and Pruitt are highly under-rated. THIS IS WHY THE SEC EAST CAUGHT UP WITH THE SEC WEST.
Nobody knows how Pittman will do as a head coach. There is way more to being a head coach at an NCAA D-1 power five, SEC program than the smartest fan on here knows. Barry Odom was not a bad person, or a bad coach, he was just over-whelmed in his head coaching job. There is no doubt in my mind that in 7-8 years he could have balanced his approach to the job. I’m not going to back up on my clearly stated observations about Odom however. He was so fixed on doing one thing well, that he did way too many other things not as well as he needed to. the wolfman has spoken. go Hogs, go Tigers, go Ozark mountain-men, Go SEC.
I think Franks was a fantastic pick up. Given the current QBs on the roster, I think he ends up being the starter for the year. Jefferson showed promise late in the season, but I think that as a pocket passer, Franks is clearly the more talented QB. While he won’t necessarily transform the program into bowl eligibility, he is a very good option to allow some of the younger guys to sit back and develop.
Wow, trying to make this fabricated battle-line rivalry a thing. Wondering if these are paid comments. I’d say fans are happy with the hire although there was some doubt at the beginning. The assembled staff look great and most have a lot confidence in the program turning around. Mizzou must have flushed their lunch because I think we be eating their lunch this year. Franks is a bit risky, but has the potential to be high reward. If you don’t shoot for the stars, you’ll always miss.
5 ways to measure success:
Compete for 4 quarters
Beat the spread on a reasonable number of games
Win non conference games handily, except Notre Dame
Beat A&M
Make a bowl game
I disagree with your opinion of Felipe Franks…he improved tremendously under Dan Mullen @ Florida who must be one of the best QB coaches anywhere. Now with K. Briles during the spring practice will only continue his development.
Nice blueprint, but tough for ARKY to pull off.
I’m think Odom will do wonders for Arkansas this year, and think Mizzou over reacted in letting him go. Will love the Thangsgiven rivalry a lot more with Odom in Arkansas
1) Score more than 3 pts for at 5 SEC Games
2) Don’t give up more than 500yds for at least 5 SEC Games
3) Don’t allow 400 second half points for at least 5 SEC Games
4) Request special permission to transfer your second half timeouts to the first half to limit the early thrashing
5) Utilize the Mercy Rule when falling behind 30pts or more in the 1st half.