Sam Pittman and the Arkansas Razorbacks might still be healing their wounds after their recent 41-35 loss against Lane Kiffin’s Ole Miss. Pittman’s squad had a nightmarish finish with a fumble in the last two minutes. The critics are getting louder.  That’s when Arkansas AD Hunter Yurachek dropped a bomb at the Little Rock Touchdown Club, addressing the gray area in NIL rules. 

Yurachek basically indicated that the Razorbacks will be sticking to the slow lane for now when it comes to football. “Until we get our [college athletics NIL] enforcement agency up and running, you’re going to continue to have schools operating in that third lane, and that’s a bad place to be in my opinion,” he said. And it did not sit well with Arkansas reporter, Jacob Davis. 

Quoting Yuracheck, he critiqued Pittman’s squad on X, “Hearing all this “third lane”, “just happy to compete in the SEC” kinda stuff at the  @LRTouchdownClub, it’s apparent that Arkansas is still NOT serious about NIL or being relevant football. Some type of change is needed or Razorback football will forever be the @SEC’s doormat.” When Yurachek first arrived, the athletics budget was $120 million, which seemed like a lot compared to his previous experience at a smaller “Group of Five” school in Houston. At present, the program’s budget has grown to $180 million. Yet, there prevails a wide gap with other SEC schools that reportedly operate with $300 million budgets. 

Yurachek admitted he had to make difficult choices, such as cutting positions and limiting athletes’ opportunities to attend summer school, to balance resources. But Davis feels otherwise. He thinks that when it comes to the NIL game, Arkansas’ current NIL approach and mindset toward SEC football are insufficient for serious competitiveness. 

The Razorbacks are perceived as lagging in NIL because of their late start in launching an NIL collective. Furthermore, some programs exploit NIL loopholes by giving players large sums of money without requiring them to promote anything or provide services. According to Yuracheck, Arkansas sticks to the spirit of the rule. This may result in them falling behind in recruiting. 

Arkansas AD’s honest opinion on Sam Pittman’s program

The Razorbacks and their fanbase have to come to terms with the reality that within the same conference, some schools have nearly double the budget, which affects recruiting, facilities, and overall competitiveness, especially in football. Yurachek shared, “But at the same time, I’ll tell you, I know the focus is on football and we all want to win in football, but at the same time, those schools have been outspending us for the last decade and we still won more SEC championships among more sports than any school in the SEC. And so I think we’re doing just fine at the University of Arkansas.”

Despite having fewer resources than wealthier SEC programs, it never came in the way of Arkansas achieving notable success across multiple sports. So what Yurachek emphasizes is that money isn’t everything, and Arkansas is capable of winning titles without matching the highest budgets. From the standpoint of the big three, he said he feels basketball is set up for a legitimate shot at the national championship. Even the baseball team is also in position to give the national title a shot. But football is another story. “Football, where we are right now, we’re not set up to win a national championship. I’ll just be brutally honest with that,” said Yurachek. 

Meanwhile Pittman needs to rebound from this loss. Mike Washington Jr.’s second touchdown did bring the Hogs within 41-35. And with 4:01 left, they had a chance to pull off a road upset. Unfortunately, Jalen Brown fumbled on the very first play after the two-minute warning, derailing their comeback attempt. It looked like Pittman went prepared for the post-game presser. Talking about the tables turning at the last moment, the head coach said, “I mean, I knew that was coming.. I don’t know what I do with it. Tell me what you’d do. I don’t know what to do,” he said. Is Pittman back in the hot seat?