Five Statistical Trends Razorbacks Must Reverse for Success

Changes Pittman must make as Hogs look to bounce back after disappointing 4-8 season

Arkansas Razorbacks coach Sam Pittman at practice on the indoor field in Fayetteville, Ark. / Andy Hodges-Hogs on SI Images

FAYETTEVILLE, Ark.— "SEC Roll Call" funny man Matt Mitchell loves to take key angles from each conference team and elaborate in a comedic way to make light of teams struggles or lack thereof.

With everything that went wrong last fall, there were plenty of options for golden content. Arkansas coach Sam Pittman likely watched the viral videos and took it personally like Michael Jordan in "The Last Dance." He knows there's one last chance to flip a few negative trends in Year 5 with the Razorbacks.

1-5 in one possession games last season

There are many trends from 2023 Arkansas must improve upon and winning close games is at the top of the list. Pittman was up front about about his team's record from last season and rightfully so.

“We have to finish the season,” Pittman said at SEC Media Days. “We did not do that well. We've got to figure out how to win the close games. We lost five games by a touchdown or less [last year]. We've got to figure that out. We feel like we're well on our way to getting that accomplished.”

Figuring that out might be a tall task given Arkansas' struggle to close out one-possession games dating back to when Pittman arrived in 2020. The Razorbacks are 6-14 in such contests, but his staff and players remain confident a turnaround in imminent.

“The support from our Razorback community has not wavered,” Pittman said. “It fuels our drive to turn things around. Our focus is to embrace the Hog, which means we need to be tough. We need to be together. We need to be consistent, accountable, and do it with pride.  I think we've accomplished that this summer. Every setback is an opportunity for a comeback. We've embraced that mindset.”

Improve run game that averaged 100 yards less in 2023

Arkansas' run game last season was atrocious mostly due to a nonexistent offensive line despite that being Pittman's area of expertise. The two seasons prior, under former offensive coordinator Kendal Briles, the Razorbacks boasted a Top10 run game.

However, Dan Enos' putrid scheme saw the Razorbacks run for 139 yards per game, which was nearly 100 yards less than previous seasons. Insert Bobby Petrino as offensive coordinator and Pittman feels pretty good where his team is and spoke about that during media days.

“Bobby obviously likes to throw a lot of play action," Pittman said at media days. "Well it’s not any good if you can’t threaten them with the run game. I like all the schematics that we’re doing up front with our line, doing a lot of different other than just running full full zone type schemes.

“We’re doing a lot of different pin and kick out, pin and pulls, and off of that if we can run the football, which we felt like we had a good spring of physicality on both sides of the ball, then I think we can do the play action as well.”

The coaching staff went out and signed three key transfer additions in Addison Nichols [Tennessee], Fernando Carmona [San Jose State] and Keyshawn Blackstock [Michigan State]. Having a bigger, more physical offensive line is key for a productive Petrino offense.

Allowed SEC-worst 3.92 sacks per game

Arkansas was dead last in the SEC for sacks per game during the regular season. Obviously, the Razorbacks recruited well out of the transfer portal, but need team effort and energy return this season. Effort and desire to execute were absent for much of last season and that can't be blamed on players as much as coaches.

Just being more physical is worth a win or two in the SEC. Wanting it more than the other team and exerting will against an opponent when smelling blood will only improve the overall success of Arkansas' offensive line.

“I think we made tremendous strides on the o-line,” Ben Sowders said back in July. “We’re definitely stronger as a whole unit and a football team. We got numbers to prove it. But, you guys know that at the end of the day, the weight room only gets you so far. You have to take what you did and what you made and you got to put it on the field.

"The biggest thing I can say is we challenged them both physically and mentally, we got them stronger but I tell them all the time, ‘If it doesn’t challenge you, it won’t change you.’ So, my job is to put them in adverse situations and see if you can accomplish what we’re asking for you to accomplish."

Only 37 Redzone Attempts

Big props to former kicker Cam Little who was able to bail Arkansas out of tough spots more than a few times last season thanks to his leg. The Hogs' offense could hardly sustain drives to its opponents' 20-yard line before stalling out during game-defining moments.

Without Briles, Arkansas slumped from No. 7 in redzone trips during the 2022 season to No. 13 ahead of only Vanderbilt last year. With Petrino at offensive coordinator in addition to other changes offensively to become more physical, maybe that will help the Razorbacks become more of a threat in the redzone.

Now, when the offense did get close to the goalline it usually scored at 92% clip which ranked No. 3 in the SEC. Sadly, Arkansas couldn't get to paydirt enough, which led to Pittman overhauling the offensive coaching staff.

Defense Allowed 28 Points Per Game

Bringing this stat up certainly isn't an insult to the job Travis Williams did as a first-year defensive coordinator last season. Actually, it's the opposite, which is something his defense must continue to get better at in 2024.

Most fans, and even Pittman, will say Arkansas' defense was the best part of last season since Williams' unit seemed to bring positive energy every single possession. Get this, the Razorbacks only allowed 18 points per game in their first eight games last season before imploding during the final four games of November.

If the offense can hold up its end of the bargain, the defense has a chance to be a quality unit again.

HOGS FEED:

• First on field has different meaning for Pittman, Razorbacks

• Pittman releases Hogs' Week One depth chart ahead of game with UAPB

• Calipari schedules visit with 5-star, in-state legacy prospect

Subscribe and follow us on YouTube
Follow HogsSI on X and Facebook