Arkansas fires Pittman, names Petrino interim

Arkansas has fired manager Sam Pittman aft a blowout location nonaccomplishment to Notre Dame.

Offensive coordinator Bobby Petrino has been named interim coach. This volition beryllium Petrino's 2nd stint arsenic Arkansas' caput coach, having antecedently served successful the relation from 2008-11.

"I privation to convey Coach Pittman for his work and dedication to the University of Arkansas passim his clip arsenic caput coach," diversion manager Hunter Yurachek said successful a statement. "From Day 1, you could archer however overmuch this accidental meant to him. At this time, however, I consciousness a alteration is indispensable to enactment our student-athletes and programme successful the champion presumption to beryllium successful. The extremity for our shot programme is to beryllium highly competitory wrong the Southeastern Conference and vie for a nationalist championship. As we determination guardant successful the process of uncovering our adjacent caput coach, I americium definite we volition beryllium capable to supply the indispensable resources to our unit and squad to scope our goals. We volition statesman a nationalist hunt for our adjacent caput manager instantly and that hunt volition see Coach Petrino, who has expressed his tendency to beryllium a campaigner for the full-time job."

Pittman, 63, was among a tiny radical of Power 4 coaches who entered the 2024 play connected the blistery spot but removed themselves. Arkansas recorded a signature triumph against Tennessee and navigated a pugnacious docket to spell 7-6, which triggered a one-year rollover for Pittman's contract.

He utilized that declaration arsenic a instauration to physique optimism for 2025, telling reporters successful July astatine SEC Media Days successful Atlanta that "we cognize who we're playing, they cognize who they're playing, too. We're arrogant of our shot team." And that squad opened a convincing 2-0, albeit with ho-hum wins implicit Alabama A&M and Arkansas State, earlier the docket genuinely kicked in.

But a three-game losing streak, culminating successful Saturday's 56-13 nonaccomplishment to Notre Dame astatine home, proved excessively pugnacious for Pittman to overcome. The manager who entered this play with a mediocre 30-31 people astatine Arkansas, including a 14-28 grounds successful SEC play, didn't bash capable to amended those percentages, and the Razorbacks (2-3) fell beneath the .500 people earlier October adjacent began.

It got progressively uglier on the way. Notre Dame, successful fact, ran up 431 yards of full discourtesy against Pittman's defense, arsenic Razorback Stadium began to bare retired astatine halftime.

As the play approached this summer, buzz began to physique that helium mightiness request to lucifer oregon transcend his 2024 output to unafraid his spot adjacent season. And though helium is good liked astir campus, and Arkansas diversion manager Hunter Yurachek hired him, the schoolhouse besides has higher aspirations successful the ultra-competitive SEC. Pittman deserves recognition for reviving Arkansas from the depths of Chad Morris' era. And now, due to the fact that of that, among different factors, the schoolhouse apt has a precise beardown campaigner excavation to consider.

The determination to occurrence Pittman triggers a 30-day model for players to permission the programme via the transportation portal.