How Many Wins Does Pittman Need to Avoid Uproar from Razorback Fans?

After a so-so 6-6 season with a postseason cherry on top that may not be enough in next year

Arkansas Razorbacks coach Sam Pittman on the sidelines against the Texas A&M Aggies. / Michael Morrison-Hogs on SI Images

FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. — It wouldn't be accurate to say all we've heard are crickets out of the football center for Arkansas football the last several weeks. There hasn't even been that.

Social media posts from players that attend some of the weekend visits don't count. With spring football practice less than a month away now, that will likely pick up fairly soon because right now nobody is talking about Razorback football.

Maybe Sam Pittman wants it that way. How well that works out isn't clear for a coach sitting a win behind just being a .500 coach that probably wants to avoid being the sixth out of the last seven football coaches at Arkansas that were fired. Sam wants to leave on his terms.

Arkansas Razorbacks coach Sam Pittman talks to Tennessee Volunteers coach Josh Heupel prior to the game at Razorback Stadium. / Nelson Chenault-Imagn Images

We're not going into the argument whether Houston Nutt was fired or left. It's not relevant nearly 20 years later and there are bigger issues in the present day.

To avoid getting into those conversations, though, Pittman has got to win more than six games in a season with players he recruited. His best season was 2021 when he put together an 8-4 team primarily with players recruited by somebody else and got a bowl win for nine wins.

As good as it was, that season has absolutely nothing to do with present day. Unless there's an inability to pay another buyout, another so-so season with a bowl trip to Memphis might not be considered progress by many fans.

THE ARKANSAS RAZORBACKS ARE OUTBACK BOWL CHAMPS! pic.twitter.com/HwZQ2uOlG0

— Tera Talmadge (@TeraTalmadge) January 1, 2022

That's not a knock on Pittman. The numbers are what they are, though, and that's 6-6 seasons out of the last three. That was a train wreck 4-8 season in 2023 everybody wants to forget. Nobody can call the last three seasons anything near progress.

Now there's another roster with more questions than answers looking ahead to spring practice. Yes, there are some players who are good. A lot of them will look great in spring practice because, well, it's still practice and everybody allowed to put the uniform on probably can make a couple of plays here and there.

But it's very hard to look at the roster right now and see any all-league players. Taylen Green may be the best they've got at quarterback and will look great in the spring because he's not being tackled to the ground. Considering he transferred to the Hogs from Boise State and they went to the playoffs without him, so think about that for a minute.

Arkansas Razorbacks quarterback Taylen Green (10) is tackled by Texas Longhorns defensive back Jaylon Guilbeau (3) as linebacker Liona Leaf (18) defends during the fourth quarter at Razorback Stadium. / Nelson Chenault-Imagn Images

Bring back the spring practice days where quarterback Ron Calcagni was hoping defensive tackle Dan Hampton didn't nail him. Or quarterback Greg Thomas was dodging safety Steve Atwater coming at him. Teams don't do that these days because it's a different world.

Pittman probably wouldn't mind seeing those days of full-contact springs come back if hew knew injuries wouldn't cost him a job. The answer to that, of course, is have a depper roster. It's not for a lack of trying to get better players, but they aren't able to keep the good ones they get for long.

In about 24 days we'll get a look at what they have for next season. At least in practice, but considering they're playing a schedule against teams contending for the playoffs last season and loading up it won't be easy.

Right now, nobody is saying the Hogs improved their roster in the latest round of recruiting and transfer portal additions. The excitement level might be higher if a lot of good players weren't taking snaps for teams the Razorbacks will face on the field next year. We have no idea right now if anybody coming in is better than them.

Worst of all, Pittman can't really say if they are or not. It's the political world we live in right now.

None of that public discussion is on the agenda for this year's team when they start practices March 10. It is something the fans will be talking about, though.

Which leads to the magic number question. How many wins will fire up the fan base this year? Somehow repeating history doesn't seem like it will get the job done. What happens then will be interesting.

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