Pittman: "It was time to get back home"
After enduring a three game stretch away from Fayetteville, head coach Sam Pittman and his Arkansas Razorbacks (5-3, 2-3) will play their first game in Donald W. Reynolds Razorback Stadium in over a month when Liberty comes to town Saturday.
The last game the Hogs played in front of their home crowd was a 49-26 loss to Alabama on Oct. 1. Since then, they lost at Mississippi State, won at BYU, had a bye week and then defeated Auburn this past Saturday.
Pittman seemed relieved to finally have another game in front of the Razorback faithful.
"Thank you, Lord," Pittman said in his Monday press conference. "It was time to get back home. Everybody says it, but we truly have the greatest fans in the country and they want to see the Hogs play and we want to play in front of them. It’s a big deal for me, our staff and our team to play in front of the state of Arkansas."
Former Ole Miss and current Liberty head coach Hugh Freeze will bring his 7-1 Flames to town with hopes of taking down an SEC opponent.
Freeze said Monday that he and his team have been preparing for the environment.
"I've got a good feeling of what Arkansas will be like," Freeze said. "I showed them how to do the Woo Pig Sooie and Arkansas Razorbacks. You know, you got to get into it. You're going to hear it a lot. So, you've got to get into it and know what you're talking about."
The game against the Flames is the first of a three-game home stand for the Razorbacks.
"We’re really excited and we have three in a row," Pittman said. "So obviously we need to win. Each win will pump up our fan base a little bit more and it’ll help us win. They’ll help us win. If we’re fortunate enough to win on Saturday, I’m sure it’ll be a lot to do with the home crowd advantage."
It was announced Monday that Arkansas' game against LSU on Nov. 12 will be an 11 a.m. CT kickoff at Reynolds Razorback Stadium. Pittman said he was disappointed in that decision, mainly because it puts them at a disadvantage for recruiting.
This Saturday's game against Liberty will be a 3 p.m. CT kickoff, and Pittman said that's the sweet spot from a recruiting standpoint.
"3 o’clock is probably honestly about the best," Pittman said. "Because you can get kids, you can give them time to get in and you can give them time to get home if they can’t spend the night. Obviously if they can spend the night then you can be with them during the evening and things of that nature. That’s probably the best time."
Pittman and his team will have the chance to perform in front of their recruits for the first time in a while Saturday. The game will be broadcast on the SEC Network.