Arkansas coach Sam Pittman is looking forward to the challenge of the Texas Longhorns offense

When the Texas Longhorns and the Arkansas razorbacks met for the final time as non-conference opponents 2021Steve Sarkisian had just one game experience under his belt after taking over as head coach. On the other hand, the Razorbacks had just entered their third season under Sam Pittman and were unknowingly on the verge of having the most successful season of the past decade.

Now in his fourth year with the Longhorns, Sarkisian has already led his team to a Big 12 Championship title and College Football Playoff appearance while currently seeking an SEC championship. Arkansas has followed its 4-8 performance last season with a 5-4 record thus far, while Texas has maintained its consistency from a 12-2 record to an 8-1 record in its first year as an SEC member.

Pittman pointed out the obvious in his argument Media availability Mondaywhich details how the Longhorns have found more speed and physicality on their roster than what they had three years ago, especially with breakout performances from wide receiver Isaiah Bond, running back Jaydon Blue, and Trey Moore against Florida last weekend.

“Especially since we played them last time, they’re a different team. Their talent level is definitely a lot faster and bigger than what they were the last time we played them,” Pittman said. “We’re definitely looking forward to the challenge we have, which is a huge challenge against a great Texas team.”

What particularly caught Pittman’s attention with the new and improved Sarkisian-era side is the fact that his play designs have been known to take attention away from the ball. One of the plays that stood out to Pittman was the double fake screen on the starting quarterback Quinn Ewers Finally, he handed the ball to Bond for a 44-yard gain. The head coach said he has to prepare his guys for this kind of abuse if they want to avoid the Longhorns. offence running along the sidelines.

“They want to get the ball to the rim and get you in space,” Pittman said. “We’ve got to have our edge, we’ve got to turn everything back in, we’ve got to do that. If they get outside one of our guys, we’re in trouble. We’ve got to chase the ball and we’ve got to play extremely.” difficult.”

While Arkansas has already faced some intimidating players at the quarterback position, including Jaxson Dart for Ole Miss and Nico Iamaleava for Tennessee, he praised Ewers for being one of the most impressive quarterbacks he has seen all year.

“Ewers throws the football, he has one of the quickest releases of guys I’ve seen,” Pittman said. “He can throw a bubble screen and it’s halfway through and you haven’t even seen him throw it. He’s really, really talented and has an extremely strong arm.”

Pittman hinted he is revamping his secondary for Saturday to combat the Longhorns’ agility, but only time will tell who in Fayetteville is better prepared for the revival of an overshadowed rivalry.

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