Are Arkansas' Football Facilities Good Enough to Win?

Razorback Stadium ranks only 12th in SEC for game-day environment; Smith Center impressive

Arkansas Razorbacks coach Sam Pittman during the fourth quarter against the Missouri Tigers at Razorback Stadium. Missouri won 48-14. / Nelson Chenault-USA TODAY Sports

This is the fourth in a series of stories about Arkansas football and head coach Sam Pittman, who recently sat with writer Bob Stephens for a lengthy interview. Visit us daily this week to read a new article.

There was a time, and it was quite long ago because Sam Pittman was about 12 years old, when Arkansas' football team suffered through off-season winter conditioning workouts in a dirt area behind the temporary basketball bleachers on the south side of Barnhill Arena.

In the 50 years since, UA facilities have improved, improved, improved and improved again. Now when folks drive down Razorback Road, there's an impressive stretch of expensive buildings and outdoor practice fields, one with natural grass and another with artificial turf.

Today's players literally lack for nothing, it seems. The Fred W. Smith Center is 80,000 square feet of everything a football program needs on a daily basis: one of the biggest locker rooms ever seen (modeled after that of the Dallas Cowboys, owned by UA alum Jerry Jones).

Comprised of coaches' offices, an indoor practice field overlooked by a 120-yard two-floor weight room, players' lounge with a DJ booth, barber shop, full team meeting room and position meeting rooms, training and medical area, equipment room, a recruiting reception area, and a museum-type display that celebrates the history and accomplishments of the team and some of its greatest players. Oh, and 225 covered parking spaces.

Does that make the Razorbacks special? It certainly makes the players feel special, but that's the case at every top level college football program.

In the keep-up-with-the-Joneses world of collegiate sports, it's build it big and fancy and then improve it 10 years later. That's the nature of the beast.

Thank the Lord for rich donors, right? So, is the UA missing anything the players need?

"I don't think so," Pittman said. "I think we're in pretty good shape there. Like we needed heat in the indoor (practice area); we needed that and we got it. Some safety things we needed we got, and more restrooms to be more convenient for the guys. When they built the building as far as locker room and the barber shop, and the equipment room and the training area with the pools and all that, they did a really good job.

"You have to update some of that, but the space is there for the kids. The players' lounge, they have their own theater in there. When you make decisions, you make them first for the players and then we can adjust and if the money's there, then we need to either build up or build out."

The Smith Center was constructed a dozen years ago, "probably for 30, 35 employees," Pittman said. "We're close to doubling that now. We can still get our job done, but our space is limited."

Arkansas' state-of-the-art facilities stack up well against their brethren in the Southeastern Conference, which means they rank among the best in the country.

"I'd say we're mid-to-upper level in our facilities [compared to the rest of the SEC]," Pittman said.

It's subjective and not necessarily accurate, but some websites have sort of backed up Pittman's claim. 247Sports ranks the Hogs' 14th in the country in that regard, ninth among the 16 SEC teams.

As for Razorback Stadium, it's ranked No. 26 and 10th in the SEC by the Road to CFB website; the criteria used didn't include game-day environment, just the venue itself. CBS ranks Razorback Stadium 12th among SEC schools, but offered a caveat that it's higher if the Hogs are playing well and fans are rockin' the air with a mighty Woo Pig Sooie!

Razorback Stadium turns 86 years young Sept. 24, having undergone extensive changes since that Saturday it opened in 1938. From the grassy stands where fans sat in the north end zone to watch the Big Shootout in 1969, to the addition of 144 luxury suites, to the massive remodel of the south end zone, the grand old lady on The Hill has grown larger, more attractive and functional for fans.

The UA's first football home was a 300-seater built in 1901. The 1938 version was known as University Stadium and accommodated 13,500 spectators. It was expanded six times before reaching 50,000 seats. Then came the big 2001 expansion to 72,000 and the Hogs' home now has a capacity of 76,000.

The stadium remains the crown jewel of the football facilities, especially on game day. Facilities and a stadium don't win games — fan support can help, for sure — but amenities are a key to recruiting players that earn victories.

It's part of the puzzle that creates success. So, here's the bottom line: the Hogs' facilities are good enough.

HOGS FEED:

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• Dubinion critical piece for Arkansas' success this season

• Which 2025 prospects will choose Calipari, Razorbacks?

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