Sam Pittman to frustrated Arkansas fans: ‘I’m mad at me’

Arkansas fans were frustrated with coach Sam Pittman heading into Saturday’s game against Notre Dame and the 56-13 beating the Razorbacks took did nothing to ease the frustration. During his postgame press conference, Pittman made it clear to Arkansas fans mad at him that he shares those feelings.

A reporter began by saying, “I know there’s a lot of fans out there wondering if you should even be the head coach at this point and they want a change during the bye week.”

“Are you asking a question or are you telling me what the fans think?” Pittman clarified.

“What would you tell the fans that think that?” the reporter clarified.

“Well, A: I understand. I mean, I get it. If I was a fan, I’d be mad at me, too. I’d be frustrated as hell with me. But here’s what I’ll say. As long as I’m the head coach at Arkansas, I’m gonna fight my butt off to get the guys out there. And how long that is, that’s not, it is partly up to me because of what we put on the field. But that’s not my call. And if I’m worried about that all the time, I won’t be able to do as good a job as I possibly can. But I will say this. I’d be mad at me, too. Hell, I’m mad at me, to be perfectly honest.”

After Arkansas scored first, Notre Dame took control in the second quarter. Things got especially bad for the Razorbacks when the Fighting Irish scored a pair of touchdowns in the final minute of the first half. After the second, which gave Notre Dame a 42-13 halftime lead, the only audible sounds at Razorback Stadium were from either cheering Notre Dame fans or booing Arkansas fans. Announcer Dave Pasch noted how bad things had gotten in Fayetteville.

“And the boo birds, out in full force here in Fayetteville,” Pasch said. “An embarrassing first half by the home team but a highlight show from the road team. A lot of people were wondering after Arkansas had two heartbreaking losses, turning the ball over the last two weeks, going into potentially win both games, how they would respond. We have our answer.”

Shortly after the third quarter began, Pasch once again noted how out of sorts Arkansas looked.

“Sam Pittman said at halftime that it was emotional,” he said. “The problem was there was no emotion in the first half. It’s a little late to start showing this kind of fire when you’re down 42-13.”

A fourth-quarter touchdown, which Pasch noted was scored against the Razorbacks starters by the Fighting Irish second team, closed the scoring.

So, the questions about his job security are certainly understandable, as are the feelings of frustration, from both Pittman and the fans, about the team’s struggles.