Pittman named as head Hog football coach; five-year deal worth $3M annually
by December 8, 2019 6:41 pm 2,515 views
(from left) Arkansas Athletic Director Hunter Yurachek and incoming head football coach Sam Pittman. (photo from Yurachek Twitter account)
Sam Pittman, 58, was named Sunday (Dec. 8) by University of Arkansas athletic director Hunter Yurachek as the next head football coach of the Razorbacks. Pittman is a former offensive line coach and has for the past three years worked as associate head coach and offensive line coach at Georgia.
Pittman was the assistant head coach, offensive line coach and recruiting coordinator at Arkansas from 2013-15 before taking the job at Georgia. He also coached at Tennessee and North Carolina before coming to Arkansas in 2013.
“Excited to OFFICIALLY announce Sam Pittman as our new Head Football Coach,” Yurachek noted on Twitter. “Great days ahead for the Hogs with Sam and Jamie as a part of the Razorback family again!”
The official announcement will take place Monday on the field inside the Walker Pavilion at 3 p.m. The UA released details of Pittman’s employment agreement Monday, detailing financial terms of the job. The UA will pay the coach $3 million annually for five years, according to the agreement.
The hiring of Pittman comes after the Nov. 10 firing of Coach Chad Morris. After winning just four games in two seasons and failing to win against a Southeastern Conference foe, Chad Morris has been fired as the head Razorback football coach. University of Arkansas Athletic Director Hunter Yurachek made the announcement Sunday following a blowout loss to the Western Kentucky Hilltoppers, a Conference USA team.
Pittman, an Oklahoma native, was an assistant coach at Kansas (2001), Missouri (2000), Western Michigan (1999), Oklahoma (1997-98), Cincinnati (1996) and Northern Illinois (1994-95). He was the head coach at Hutchinson (Kan.) CC in 1992-93 and was the school’s offensive line coach in 1991. Pittman was also a high school head coach at Trenton (Mo.) (1989-90) and Princeton (Mo.) (1987-88). He began his coaching career as a student assistant at Pittsburg State in 1984-85.
Pittman played defensive end at Pittsburg State, where he was a first-team NAIA All-American and twice earned all-conference recognition. He graduated with a bachelor’s degree in 1986 and was inducted into the PSU Athletics Hall of Fame in 1998.
He is married to his wife, Jamie.