Week 3: Arkansas Razorbacks Studs & Duds

Last night’s game was not a pretty one in the eyes of the Razorback fanbase. We all know Twitter (X) goes scorched earth at the slightest inconvenience but I would be lying if it didn’t feel warranted this week. When looking at the winners and losers of the game last night, the loss has to be placed squarely on the coaching staff. Situational coaching has to improve immediately in order for Arkansas fans to not push the “Pittman’s seat is heating up” narrative. I’m not sure how you don’t get Isaiah Sategna or AJ Green more involved and more touches but I guess my job is not to make those decisions. There were several “studs” that stood out from Arkansas early in the game last night, though one “dud” began to emerge as the game went on.

STUDS:

Isaiah Sategna
Isaiah Sategna returning a punt or kick-off for a touchdown has been a foregone conclusion by Razorback fans. We didn’t know when it would happen but we knew it was coming. In the first quarter of Saturday night’s game, Sategna broke an 88-yard punt return for touchdown. You have to assume that with his athleticism on full display, that we’ll see more Isaiah in the coming weeks.

AJ Green
AJ finished the game with two touchdowns, punctuated with a 54-yard TD run in the first quarter. I’m not quite sure how he finished with only nine touches based on his production but I guess we leave that up to the coaches.

Luke Hasz
We’ve heard a lot of about Hasz all off-season and Saturday was his coming out party. Hasz made several great catches, finishing with four receptions for 78 yards and one touchdown. Even on plays where the ball wasn’t going in Hasz direction, he could be seen making some solid blocks for his teammates. His future is extremely bright in Fayettevillee.

DUDS:

Sam Pittman
I’m going to start by saying I like Coach Pittman. I think he is a great guy who deeply cares about the University of Arkansas. I’m going to follow that sentiment by acknowledging that doesn’t necessarily equate into the win-column. We all like to drink some ol’ cold beer like Sam, but it tastes a lot better when you’re proud of the product on the field. Fans on X (Twitter) are already calling for Coach Pittmans seat to heat up, and they’re probably right. The o-line does not look like the product of an o-line guru. The offense looks stagnant and disconnected at times. The defense made some plays but others showed a disconnect between defenders and their assignments. All things considered, it’s the head coaches job to have the team ready to play on Saturday.

Unfortunately, we’ve had several press conferences over the past few years where Pittman’s sentiment is “I have got to be better”. Acknowledgment of the shortcomings was comforting at first – we were happy to have a coach that could recognize and take accountability. The problem is, we’re still hearing it. Pittman said that situational coaching needs to be better over the summer, this still rings true. Considerable steps need to be taken in the right direction or Coach Pittman’s seat could get pretty hot in the coming weeks. We go into a tough four-game stretch with LSU, Texas A&M, Ole Miss, and Alabama. Arkansas better figure some things out, and they better do it quick.