Arkansas fires Sam Pittman in middle of 6th season, names Bobby Petrino interim head coach

FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. (AP) — Arkansas fired Sam Pittman on Sunday, parting ways with the popular and folksy coach who couldn’t get the Razorbacks into the upper echelon of the Southeastern Conference with a middling overall record of 32-34.

Offensive coordinator Bobby Petrino, a former head coach at Arkansas before he left in scandal, was appointed interim head coach for the remainder of the season and the school noted he is interested in the full-time job.

“I want to thank coach Pittman for his service and dedication to the University of Arkansas throughout his time as head coach,” athletic director Hunter Yurachek said. “From Day 1, you could tell how much this opportunity meant to him. At this time, however, I feel a change is necessary to put our student-athletes and program in the best position to be successful. The goal for our football program is to be highly competitive within the Southeastern Conference and compete for a national championship.”

Pittman was the fourth power-conference coached fired this season — all in the final two weeks of September — following Brent Pry at Virginia Tech, DeShaun Foster at UCLA and Mike Gundy at Oklahoma State.

The move at Arkansas came one day after the Razorbacks fell to 2-3 with a 56-13 home loss to Notre Dame. The Hogs have this week off before a game at Tennessee on Oct. 11.

Pittman was named the Razorbacks’ 34th head coach in December 2019, about a month after Arkansas fired Chad Morris, who didn’t make it through his second season in the job. Pittman’s teams earned four bowl bids in his five full seasons and his warm personality and tenure under Bret Bielema helped endear him to fans along with a handful of big wins.

Things began to sour during the 2023 season, though, as Arkansas lost six straight games in the middle of the year and fired offensive coordinator Dan Enos after just four games. The Razorbacks finished 4-8.

“As we move forward in the process of finding our next head coach, I am certain we will be able to provide the necessary resources to our staff and team to reach our goals. We will begin a national search for our next head coach immediately and that search will include coach Petrino, who has expressed his desire to be a candidate for the full-time job,” Yurachek said.

Pittman’s .484 winning percentage rates as the best since Petrino’s .667 mark from 2008-11. In SEC play, Pittman’s teams finished 14-29, yielding a .326 percentage that is also second best since Petrino’s tenure.

Petrino was rehired by Arkansas in November 2023 after a number of jobs, including two stints as Louisville coach, coaching jobs at Western Kentucky and Missouri State and serving as offensive coordinator at Texas A&M. He also also spent less than one full season in the NFL with the Atlanta Falcons before quitting to take the Arkansas job.

In four years leading the Razorbacks, Petrino went 34-17, including consecutive double-digit victory seasons in 2010 and ’11.

Petrino had the Razorbacks rolling when in April 2012 he was involved in a single-vehicle motorcycle accident that left him with four broken ribs. At first he said he was riding alone, but a police report revealed a woman was riding with him. The woman turned out to be a former Arkansas athlete who was in a romantic relationship with the married Petrino. The coach had given her a job and a $20,000 gift.

He was fired by then-athletic director Jeff Long for misleading his bosses about what happened with the accident and his relationship with the football staffer.

Two years ago upon his return to Arkansas alongside Pittman, Petrino answered questions from Arkansas reporters for the first time since his firing.

“Everybody’s different. You know that. You’re different than you were back then,” Petrino said then. “Hopefully, I’ve grown as a coach, a teacher, as a husband, as a father. I believe totally that I have. Hopefully, I’m better tomorrow than I am today.”

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AP College Football Writer Eric Olson contributed.

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