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Sam Pittman likens Alabama to ‘piranhas,’ discusses KJ Jefferson bouncing back from costly fumble
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The SEC West race heats up Saturday, as Alabama visits Arkansas in one the week’s biggest games.
The Razorbacks are coming off of a heart-breaking loss to Texas A&M on Saturday night but have no time to lick their wounds with the No. 2 Crimson Tide coming to town.
One of the key plays in Arkansas’ loss to the Aggies was a 2nd-quarter KJ Jefferson fumble at the goal line that was returned for a touchdown by A&M.
The play completely changed the momentum of the game.
Razorbacks coach Sam Pittman said Wednesday during the SEC coaches teleconference that he has no concerns about Jefferson bouncing back from that play.
“He had a lot of really good plays as well,” Pittman said. “Anytime you have elite players on your team, there’s not a whole lot you have to say to them, to be honest. You saw him after that play trying to play his heart out. I don’t know if trying to make up for that play is something, but he was trying to win the game.
“I think he’ll be fine. … The bottom line is we all made mistakes. Sometimes they’re just bigger than others because of the timing of the game and when they happen. … We all have to just move on from it and he’s done a really nice job of that this week. We don’t have time to feel sorry for ourselves.”
Pittman also talked about the challenge that comes with playing Alabama and what it will take to win.
“You have to play a really clean game,” he said. “You can’t turn the ball over. You have to convert situational football. You have to score touchdowns in the red zone. … You can’t make mistakes. If you do, they’re like piranhas. They feast on that.”
One player for whom the game is likely to be especially emotional is Drew Sanders, who transferred to Arkansas from Alabama after last season.
Sanders played predominantly at outside linebacker for the Crimson Tide but he’s playing more inside for the Razorbacks.
“He wanted to do that,” said Pittman of the shift. “He wanted to play on the inside. … He wanted to play in there and we certainly had opportunities for that. Of course, we’re using him on the edge, as well.”
Sanders has had an exceptional start to his Razorbacks career. Through 4 games he has racked up 31 tackles, 6.5 tackles for losses, 5.5 sacks, and 2 forced fumbles.
No. 20 Arkansas and the Crimson Tide are set for a 3:30 p.m. (ET) kick off Saturday in a game that will be televised by CBS.
"Chris Wallace covers college football for Saturday Down South. He has covered college athletics for multiple newspapers and also worked previously for Rivals.com and GolfChannel.com."
