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Sam Pittman will return as head coach at Arkansas in 2025, a source close to the program told Action Network.
Arkansas coach Sam Pittman will return in 2025, source close to program told @ActionNetworkHQ. There was speculation Pittman may retire, but Pittman, 29-31 w/3 bowl games, will return for 6th season at UA. He is scheduled to undergo hip replacement surgery on Tuesday
— Brett McMurphy (@Brett_McMurphy) December 2, 2024
Amid speculation that the 63-year-old might retire, Pittman will instead return for a 6th season in Fayetteville. Pittman has a slightly below average 29-31 record as Arkansas coach, and the Razorbacks’ 2024 season followed that mediocre script. Arkansas went 6-6 this season, including a 3-5 record in the SEC, with the Razorbacks’ bowl matchup still pending.
Pittman is scheduled to undergo hip replacement surgery on Tuesday, but that won’t stop Pittman from coming back for more next fall. If all goes well, Pittman will actually be coaching another Razorbacks game this season, as the Hogs are bowl-eligible and waiting to see where they’ll be headed for that bowl game.
ESPN’s Kyle Bonagura has picked the Razorbacks to face Memphis in the Birmingham Bowl in his most recent projections. His colleague, Mark Schlabach, also projects that Arkansas will play in the Birmingham Bowl. But he believes the Razorbacks’ opponent will be North Carolina.
Whoever the opponent is and whatever bowl game the Razorbacks travel to, Pittman will apparently be running the program going forward for the rest of this season and into 2025.
The highlight of this season for Pittman and the Razorbacks was an upset victory over likely Playoff team Tennessee in early October in Fayetteville.
Cory Nightingale, a former sportswriter and sports editor at the Miami Herald and Palm Beach Post, is a South Florida-based freelance writer who covers Alabama for SaturdayDownSouth.com.
