For the first time in almost six years, Arkansas is searching for a new football coach. The Sam Pittman era came to an end Sunday, one day after the Razorbacks dropped to 2-3 on the season after a 56-13 loss to Notre Dame at home.
Arkansas represents the first SEC coaching vacancy of the 2025 cycle and the fourth among Power Four programs; the Razorbacks follow in the footsteps of Virginia Tech, UCLA and Oklahoma State. The timing of their move gives them a significant advantage — they’ll have a majority of the season to evaluate their options and make connections with prospective candidates before other programs make a move.
It should go without saying that Arkansas has to get this hire right. The Razorbacks are in danger of falling further behind in the expanded SEC, which is flush with high-level teams.
Pittman did have three winning campaigns, but following the loss to Memphis, he dropped to 13-16 over his lat 29 games with the program. His predecessor, Chad Morris, nearly tanked the Hogs with a feeble 4-20 record in two seasons.
Even Bret Bielema, who’s pushing for a College Football Playoff appearance at Illinois, could not sustain success in Fayetteville. Arkansas hasn’t reached double-digit wins since 2011 when current offensive coordinator Bobby Petrino was prowling the sidelines as head coach.
Arkansas fires Sam Pittman: Razorbacks move on from football coach amid 2-3 start and 32-34 overall record
Brad Crawford
Fortunately for Arkansas, there’s a litany of young names that could provide a much-needed spark. Here’s a list of candidates to keep an eye on for the Arkansas opening.
Kinne is the best coach that Texas State has had since it transitioned to the FBS level over a decade ago. The Bobcats had one winning season in 10 years before he was hired. He’s led the program to consecutive 8-5 campaigns, capped by their first two bowl wins in program history. That record includes a power conference win against Baylor and close games against the likes of Arizona State. Prior to his hiring at Texas State, Kinne established himself as an offensive mastermind at FCS Incarnate Word. At just 36 years old, he could be the type of upside swing that Arkansas needs to take at the head coach spot.
SMU coach Rhett Lashlee
Lashlee, a former Arkansas quarterback, came to SMU in 2022 after the Mustangs lost previous coach Sonny Dykes to TCU. One year later, he won 11 games and delivered SMU its first conference title since 1984 by winning the American. The Mustangs didn’t lose a step under Lashlee as they transitioned to the Power Four level in 2024. SMU went undefeated in its first season with the ACC, came a field goal short of winning the ACC title and snagged an at-large spot in the inaugural 12-team College Football Playoff. He’s 22-8 over his last 30 games with the Mustangs. SMU has considerable resources and, thanks in large part to Lashlee’s success, has reinvested heavily into its football program, so it wouldn’t be easy to draw him away. It’d be worth the effort to see if he would come home, though.
Malzahn is in the midst of revitalizing Florida State’s offense — the Seminoles are averaging 58 points per game amid their 3-0 start to the 2025 campaign — but most know him better as a head coach. His most recent tenure at UCF was, at best, forgettable and, at worst, disastrous. Coaches with ready-made SEC experience don’t grow on trees, though. Malzahn has that in spades. A former offensive coordinator and wide receivers coach at Arkansas, Malzahn made a name for himself as Auburn’s coach. He led the Tigers to a berth in the 2013 BCS National Championship Game to end his first year on The Plains and produced a Heisman Trophy-winning quarterback in Cam Newton. He also won 68 games, logged five finishes in the AP Top 25 and made two appearances in the SEC Championship Game in his eight years at Auburn.
Another product of Incarnate Word, Morris’ star is rising. He comes from the coveted Mike Leach coaching tree as a former Texas Tech wide receiver and inside wide receivers coach at Washington State. He’s gradually improved in his three seasons at North Texas. After posting a 5-7 record in his first year, he led the Mean Green to a bowl game last season and is off to a 4-0 start to the 2025 campaign. That résumé includes impressive wins against Washington State and Army.
Purdue coach Barry Odom
Arkansas’ fans should be well-acquainted with Odom. He was tabbed as Arkansas’ defensive coordinator in Pittman’s first season with the program and remained with the Razorbacks through 2022. In 2021, when Arkansas reached its nine-win zenith under Pittman, Odom’s defense allowed just 22.9 points and 367.7 yards per game. He parlayed his time at Arkansas into a coaching job at UNLV, where he won 19 games and made two appearances in the Mountain West Conference Championship Game. Odom, who also won 25 games as Missouri’s coach from 2016-19, is 2-2 through his first four games at Purdue. Both of those losses came against currently ranked power conference foes.
Arkansas offensive coordinator Bobby Petrino
Arkansas athletic director Hunter Yurachek revealed that the 64-year-old Petrino, who is serving as the interim in the wake of Pittman’s firing, will be considered in the search after Petrino expressed a desire to fill the full-time role. Petrino led the Hogs from 2008-11 and won 21 games in his last two seasons, capped by a victory against Kansas State in the Cotton Bowl before he was ousted due to a string of off-field issues. He recently made his return to Fayetteville as Arkansas’ offensive coordinator. He’s had the Razorback offense humming. Arkansas is currently fourth in the SEC with 514.6 total yards per game and third in the conference with 213.8 yards rushing per contest.
Memphis coach Ryan Silverfield
Arkansas experienced firsthand what Silverfield is capable of Saturday afternoon. His Tigers improved to 4-0 with their thrilling win over the Razorbacks. That also gave Silverfield a 25-5 record over his past three seasons in Memphis, and it marked the third season in a row that Memphis notched a win against a Power Four opponent. He’s won four straight bowl games (not counting the 2021 Hawaii Bowl, which was canceled due to COVID-19 complications) and has presided over two AP Top 25 finishes for Memphis.
Tulane coach Jon Sumrall
Sumrall has long been one of the hottest coaching names in college football, and it seems like a matter of when — and not if — a Power Four program comes calling. A former defensive assistant at Ole Miss and co-defensive coordinator at Kentucky, Sumrall won 23 games and two Sun Belt Conference titles in his first two seasons as a head coach at Troy and left for Tulane ahead of the 2024 season. He immediately steered the Green Wave to an American Championship Game appearance, meaning that he’s played for a championship in all three of his seasons leading a program. Tulane is right back in the thick of it in 2025, as Sumrall has already guided his team to two wins against Power Four competition.
UTSA coach Jeff Traylor
Traylor’s been a trendy name before in some prolific coaching searches. He hasn’t had a losing season in five full years with the Roadrunners. Traylor had a bit more success when UTSA was still in Conference USA. He logged 23 of his 48 career wins from 2021-22 while leading the Roadrunners to consecutive C-USA titles and a 15-1 record in conference play. UTSA has yet to reach double-digit wins since transitioning to the American Conference in 2023, but Traylor has kept a five-year postseason streak alive and he has won back-to-back bowl games for the first time in his career over the last two seasons. And though the on-field results may have fallen off in recent years, Traylor is worth a look for his recruiting connections alone. A former associate head coach and running backs coach at Arkansas, Traylor made his name as a top high school coach in the state of Texas. He still has deep ties in the Texas high school football scene and can tap that while recruiting one of the nation’s richest talent bases.
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