New Arkansas coach Sam Pittman continued his media tour on Friday with an appearance on “The Paul Finebaum Show” where he confirmed the hiring of defensive coordinator Barry Odom, the former Missouri head coach.

“Well, I can tell you this, I’m ecstatic that he’s in his car headed down to Fayetteville as we speak,” Pittman said. “I’m ecstatic. Paul, I felt like I needed a guy on my staff that had been a head coach and one I could lean on and talk to and there’s really not a better person out there and a finer coach, finer man, than Barry Odom. I’m just blessed he’s in his car coming down here.”

Pittman, a long-time and well-respected offensive line coach, returns to Fayetteville after being the offensive line coach at Arkansas for three seasons under Bret Bielema. In the mean time, he was at Georgia, where he upgraded the Bulldogs’ front with several blue-chip recruits.

Pittman said he was surprised and grateful for the opportunity to be the head coach at Arkansas.

In Odom, Arkansas gets a defensive coach who has improved multiple defenses in his tenure. At Missouri in 2015, the Tigers were No. 5 nationally in scoring defense, and with Memphis in 2014, his unit was No. 11 in scoring defense, a defense was was No. 105 in the country in 2011.