Pittman on the Bulldogs
Arkansas coach Sam Pittman revealed to reporters at his press conference in Fayetteville Monday that he sent Georgia defensive coordinator Dan Lanning a text Sunday afternoon
After all, he’s a friend, having worked together on the Bulldog staff for four years.
“I texted Dan Lanning last night, and I told him he doesn’t need to put any more blitzes in, because we can’t run them all anyway,” Pittman said. “He sent me back 11, he drew it on a piece of paper and sent me back all 11 of them rushing.”
Pittman chuckled at the recollection, although when it comes to his Razorbacks (4-0, 1-0) playing the Bulldogs (4-0, 2-0) Saturday (Noon, ESPN), he knows it won’t be a laughing matter.
Not surprisingly, Pittman’s main concerns lie with a Georgia defense that ranks first nationally in both total defense (181.8 yards per game) and scoring defense (5.75 points per game).
“They have so much talent on the D-line. Certainly, big and physical. It starts with (Jordan) Davis and (Jalen) Carter. Nolan Smith, (Travon) Walker. They're very, very talented. They rotate guys as well, so they keep them fresh. You go back to linebacker, and they have Quay Walker and (Nakobe) Dean, and they can run,” Pittman said. “They've recruited really well there, so they're going to have depth. That's just Georgia, and hopefully Arkansas will get that way here in the near future, where somebody leaves and the next guy steps in and he may be as good, or he may be better than the guy that left. But that's where Georgia is, and that's a credit to their staff and Kirby for recruiting."
However, Arkansas has some weapons of their own.
Quarterback KJ Jefferson has proven to be quite the dual threat. In four games, Jefferson has completed 46 of 78 passes for 844 yards and six touchdowns with two interceptions, and is the team’s second-leading rusher with 32 carries for 230 yards and two scores.
There’s also wide receiver Treylon Burks, who at 6-foot-3 and 239 pounds, is not only a big, athletic target, but can run, as indicated by a season thus far that’s seen him catch 19 passes for 373 yards and two touchdowns, one he took to the house for 91 yards.
Both players came away from the team’s 20-10 win against Texas A&M with respective injuries, but according to Pittman, both will be good to go against the Bulldogs.
"He's (Jefferson) sore. Treylon's sore. Obviously, we've played some good football teams and physical games,” Pittman said. “I think both of them will be fine. They may or may not be able to go full speed today, but I don't think it will be a problem for the game."
Pittman, who has maintained his appreciation for Smart since returning to Arkansas, did so again Monday.
“I learned a lot from Coach. I mean, a lot about practice organization, a lot about assistants—I don’t know if pressure is the word—but putting demands on assistant coaches to be the best they can be. Obviously recruiting. You know, Coach, all he wants to do is win,” Pittman said. “I mean, he’s going to treat people right and all that. I certainly don’t mean that (he doesn’t). But he’s at his alma mater and he wants to win for the state of Georgia, the University of Georgia. I mean, you’ve got to respect all that. His kids, they play extremely hard.
“You don’t find many teams that are playing extremely hard that don’t have high respect for the head coach. They do, and I was very fortunate to be there four years and learn from him.”
