LSU Coach Diagnoses Biggest Issue Facing Hogs

Arkansas clearly living different experience than many of its SEC counterparts

Arkansas Razorbacks coach Sam Pittman at the Red-White game in Razorback stadium April 13, 2024 in Fayetteville, Ark. / Michael Morrison-allHOGS Images

DALLAS – If Arkansas fans are looking for what keeps the Razorbacks from competing for an SEC championship, LSU head coach Brian Kelly laid it out this morning at SEC Media Days.

"The transfer portal is what I always thought it would be, in that it can't be strictly need-based," Kelly said. "If you're in the transfer portal for need-based, in other words you're filling needs, you haven't done something right in the natural recruiting season. Last year, it was need-based, and that's never a good situation when it comes to the development of your football program."

To be fair, that's spoken like a coach who has full coffers for the NIL. Still, he brings up a valid point upon which he expanded.

"I think you need to use the transfer portal to top off the tank, so to speak," Kelly said. "That you can add to a particular position and almost one that it's not needed, but becomes a luxury. When you can get to that situation. I think that the transfer portal becomes an effective tool, but if it's strictly need-based, you're probably in for some rough seas."

If his philosophy is correct, rough seas are exactly what the Hogs are in for this season. During ESPN's Arkansas day, the win over Florida from last season was shown.

The stopover for a glimpse was short, about 10 plays, but of those, eight were made by players who are no longer on the team, but could have been. It became obvious how much work Sam Pittman had in front of him shoring up the linebacker, secondary and offensive line positions.

That's three whole position groups where the portal was needed to find immediate starters. That's not including the running backs room that included Rashod Dubinion and a handful of young guys no Razorbacks fan could truthfully say they knew are on the team.

Pittman wasn't topping the tank. He was scrounging around under the floor mats for loose change trying to get enough in the tank to get himself back home from the local gas station.

Like a lot of people in Arkansas, Pittman probably feels like he'll never have enough money on hand to drive around on a full tank, much less do so while pumping premium with extra cash available to top it off a little later like the top portion of the SEC has been able to do.

There's not a whole lot he can do about it either. Fans are maxed out on what they can do to help the program, high end donors are very few in comparison to much of the SEC, and the ones who are able to help are focused on carrying other sports to national level success.

Each year Pittman has to rely more and more on transfers rather than the players he recruited. The problem with transfers is a lot of them are essentially divorcees.

It's hard to establish a long-term marriage with someone who has been divorced because, for them, ending it is something they've already done, so it's a viable option. Transfers aren't as likely to be emotionally beholden to a staff or school.

They'll move on to the next big paycheck at a school with a whole new set of friends to make and young ladies to meet. Pittman has already seen that, unless a transfer goes pro the following year, outside of a handful of players, they move on and take the gas with them.

Living tank to tank hoping to have just enough to coast into the driveway while shifted into neutral is no way for a coach to go through life. However, it just might be the most Arkansas metaphor out there.

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