Pittman Speaks In Atlanta. What Did He Say?

“You Asked Me What I Wanted”

In his opening statement, Pittman did not steer away from Arkansas having another grueling schedule. He told those in attendance that “It is never easy” when describing maneuvering the waters of scheduling. We have come to learn that Pittman describes, and at times overdescribes, things in ultimate detail. 

Starting with the opener against Alabama State, Pittman went through the non-conference slate and praised each program along the way. He made some waves across the Natural State [Arkansas] as he was transparent about the Arkansas State game in Little Rock. 

“We’ve never played Arkansas State. That should be exciting for both Arkansas State and the University of Arkansas. Butch Jones came up with an 8-5 season. He’s doing a wonderful job over there. I believe that we should have that rivalry.”

Later in the media Q&A, Pittman was asked what he wanted to do with where the game is played. Pittman said “No” when asked if he wanted to play the Red Wolves in Little Rock. He doubled down. “I want to play them in Fayetteville. That’s what I want to do. You asked me what I want. If we’re going to play Arkansas State, I want to play ’em at home.”

Political Pull

The game in Little Rock has issues because of the condition of War Memorial Stadium. has nothing to do with what Pittman, or anyone else, “wants”. Pittman revealed that the location of this and future match-ups against Arkansas State is out of the hands of the schools. “Whatever the Governor decides, that’s what she decides.” The governor’s office decides where the two teams will play.  Pittman added, “I‘m not really interested in going over there and playing.” when discussing whether he wanted to visit Jonesboro. 

After running through the SEC games, Pittman stated that this slate of games in 2025, “ gives the University of Arkansas one hell of an opportunity.”.  

The Hill Is Steep 

The coach addressed what it takes to recruit top-level talent to the school, after being asked about the lack of Razorbacks going in the NFL draft. This caused him to pause and reflect before answering. He did not shy away as he accepted that recruiting has been down for players coming from Arkansas. With this, Pittman told the media that “We have to go outside of our state.”

Pittman told the media, “We like to stay within an eight-hour radius if we can. We’ve expanded that just a little bit, where our kids can come see us several different times,” and based on his numbers from out of state, this has been effective.

Money Talks

The other issue, not only in Fayetteville but across the nation, is revenue sharing. Pittman addressed this a few times from the podium. When discussing how the Razorbaks stack up against the competition, he said, “ I think now we’re back on even keel with everybody, which we weren’t. “ 

If you have visited the campus of Arkansas, you have heard the term “The Hill.” The campus is built on the side of a mountain. The road that the football stadium sits on is a steep hill. Pittman stated, “We’ve got a good football team. We’ve got a good staff. We’ve got great facilities. We got a great state of fans at the University of Arkansas, the state of Arkansas. There’s no reason we can’t do it. If I were going to make an excuse, it would be financial is why we haven’t done quite as well as where we were projected in my first two years. But I think now with it being even, I look out that the Razorbacks are coming on.”

The GM Era Is Here 

One way for the climb to be easier is with a General Manager on staff. With the portal and now NIL, there has to be a focus on the financial side of sports. With this, we see this position is hired across the country, and Arkansas is no different. Former Boston Celtics Director of Scouting, Remy Cofield, was hired for this role at Arkansas. 

When asked how this addition has allowed Pittman to get back to focus on just coaching, he smiled and said, “Man, he’s helped me.” To further his point, Pittman gloated about how Cofield took the pressure of the finances for players as he painted a hypothetical picture. “If somebody comes in to me and they say, I need 16 kazillion thousand dollars, and I think he’s worth a dollar, then I’m sitting here going, man, you’re going to lose our relationship here. When we do, gone, right? I don’t have to deal with that anymore.”

Pittman then stated that “Remy has taken all that off my plate. I can’t tell you how much smoother the April portal was than the January portal. He’s helped in that. I think eventually he’ll be more into the talent evaluation once he knows what our team is,” which has to ease some fans’ minds when it comes to how this program is run. With Pittman being a “CEO” style coach, this era honestly fits him better. 

 Just Win

He was transparent when asked about being on lists, saying he was on the proverbial hot seat. “Well, when they discuss other coaches, it doesn’t affect me, so I’m good there,” he said. 

As to himself specifically, Pittman said, “I’m going to say this. The only ramifications of someone constantly having you on this list or this list, whatever other list, is recruiting.” When talking about how to alleviate the pressure and produce better recruiting, Pittman said, “Now, how can we stop that? We win more games. That’s what we can do.” This is easier said than done for a coach with a  30-31 overall record. In owning up to this less than stellar record, the sixth-year man stated that, “Look, most everything a guy brings on him, he brings on himself. Most things that come out, you earn it. Now, you may disagree with some of it, all that. But I’ve earned it, I have.” He went on to add, “I think you’ve got to look at it as year to year, how you’re doing. I’m not worried about it ’cause I got a good staff and a good team. So I’m not worried about it at all. But I do appreciate the question.” 

The End Game

Do we believe that Sam wanted to, again, discuss his job at SEC Media Days? No. But, once again, Pittman did not shy away or dodge the question. This was another showing of confidence for Pitman despite his delivery being mundane at times. With the continuity on staff and roster, the 2025 season can be special for Arkansas. As we are now past the “Talking Season” for the SEC, Pittman didn’t deliver coach speak but transparency as the new season approaches.