What’s the future of Sam Pittman in Arkansas? If you ever want to see how two programs in somewhat a similar lane throw wildly different punches, just think about Bret Bielema. Take his second act at Illinois and compare it to his bruising, baffling run with the Razorbacks. It wasn’t a pretty situation when he was let go eight years ago. And now in 2024, the ghost of his past is haunting the current HC in Fayetteville.
On June 4th’s episode on Cover 3 Podcast, national analyst Tom Fornelli set the record straight when someone asked him this question — “Why or how is Brett Bielema succeeding at Illinois but failed miserably at Arkansas. Both are kind of the same tier of program and I’d argue Arkansas is historically better.” After stating his disagreement saying “Illinois has won two and a half times as many national titles as Arkansas has,” he dropped his take saying, “To me, the biggest difference is Illinois knows what it is. Arkansas doesn’t.” Let’s go back to 2013 when Bret Bielema first stepped up as the HC at Arkansas.
Bret Bielema’s Arkansas stint from 2013 to 2017 ended with a 29-34 record. He was fired after a 48-45 loss to Missouri, leaving with two seven-win seasons and one eight-win campaign. But he never finished better than third in the SEC West. His SEC record was a bumpy 11-29, including a brutal 0-8 mark in 2013. Still, as Tom Fornelli argued, “If you look at Bret Bielema’s record at Arkansas, it really isn’t all that different to what Sam Pittman’s been doing and it really isn’t all that different to what he’s been doing ag Illinois.”
It’s not just the numbers. It’s patience. Illinois gave Bret Bielema the runway. After a step back post-8-win season, the Illini didn’t panic. Instead, they even extended him an additional six-year contract running through 2031 worth $7.7 million per year. His 28-22 overall record (18-18 in the B1G) in Champaign includes two bowl games and a 10-win season that turned heads in the Big Ten. Since taking over the 2021 season, he credited his success to alignment saying, “Over the last four seasons, our program has been built on tough, smart, dependable people in every facet: from our players, to our coaches and staff, to our administration.” Meanwhile, Arkansas still seems stuck in 2025.
The brutal reality of beloved coach Sam Pittman
When Sam Pittman took over Arkansas in 2020, he injected hope into a program gasping for air. In 2021, the Razorbacks went 9-4, won the Outback Bowl, and landed in the final AP Top 25 for the first time in a decade. But fast forward three seasons, he now sits at 30-31 overall, with a grueling 14-28 SEC record. Last year’s 4-8 (1-7 in SEC) campaign felt like an early warning. Despite a contract through 2027, the whispers are growing louder.
On That SEC Football Podcast, Cousin Shane put it bluntly — “Sam’s a great guy, but I don’t think he lasts three.” He also added, “If a coach comes out here and tells you an expiration date, you can usually subtract two years from it. And the reason is you’re recruiting, so you don’t want to recruit a kid and say, come here to Arkansas, work with me but you’ve already put a date out there that you are leaving… I hate to say it — I feel like this is Sam Pittman’s last season.” Who knows, the biggest problem might not be Sam Pittman or Bret Bielema. It might be Arkansas itself. As Tom Fornelli put it, “Compared to how the other coaches have done at Arkansas, I’d say Bret’s record at Arkansas is pretty much in line with what everybody’s done at Arkansas.”
Maybe the real Bret Bielema failure wasn’t in Fayetteville. Maybe it was Arkansas thinking it was more than it is. And Sam Pittman might just be the next chapter in the same hardback book.
The post Sam Pittman’s Arkansas Forced to Face Tough Bret Bielema Reality as National Analyst Reveals Razorbacks’ True Calling appeared first on EssentiallySports.
