Third in a series previewing SEC football teams.
ATLANTA -- A lot of media types like the Arkansas Razorbacks to challenge near the top of the SEC West or make noise as a dark horse candidate in the conference.
Third-year University of Arkansas Coach Sam Pittman, who has sparked a turnaround and galvanized the Razorback fan base, would rather not hear media being high on the Hogs.
He said as much from the main podium at SEC Media Days on Wednesday when he was asked if Arkansas has "arrived" as a program.
"Oh, no, no, no, no," Pittman said. "Arkansas is just trying to compete. We're trying to get better. We're trying to fight hard. ... We're the underdog. We like it that way."
No matter how the Razorbacks are characterized, these are the facts:
Arkansas went 9-4 last season, a six-win improvement from 2020 and more wins than the Hogs had accumulated the previous three years. Pittman's second club went 4-4 in the SEC, the program's second break-even year or better in league play since going 6-2 (and 11-2 overall) in 2011.
The trio of quarterback KJ Jefferson, linebacker Bumper Pool and safety Jalen Catalon -- perhaps the biggest star power Arkansas has sent to media days in years -- woke up at 3:30 a.m. Wednesday to fly to Atlanta and face questions about Arkansas becoming a rising force in the harsh SEC West.
"We're glad that people are starting to see what we're capable of doing," Catalon said. "At the same time, you've just got to go out and prove yourself and show what you can do every single year.
"Every team's hungry. Every team wants to get to the very top. So it's all about how you take care of your team, and how you take care of yourself, and how you take care of the whole environment around you."
Pool's first two teams at Arkansas went 2-10 in 2018 and 2019, with no SEC wins in 16 tries. He's been a key component in the turnaround.
"I've been through the ups and downs with this team, so expectations aren't really a thing with me," he said. "This year we know what it takes to win, and I know what happens when you lose. For us, expectations are just outside noise. We're focused on us."
Jefferson's rise in the dual-threat ranks of college quarterbacks played a key role in the Razorbacks' big run in 2021, which included an MVP turn in Arkansas' 24-10 win over Penn State in the Outback Bowl.
He thinks the buzz around the Hogs is a product of the mentality Pittman has instilled.
"It just comes with that hard-nosed football, and having a chip on our shoulder, and each and every day working and just building a bond with each other," Jefferson said.
Year 2 as Arkansas' starting quarterback finds a more confident Jefferson.
"It's very different, just having the confidence that I didn't have last year going into it," he said. "Just very nervous, stressed out. Am I going to make mistakes? Am I going to do this? Am I going to do it right?
"So just being able to come in now and know that I have what it takes to be in this league. I have what it takes to take my team into a 10-win season this year, and just having that success, and showing that our program is still on the rise."
To get to 10 wins, the Razorbacks have to find one more win against an uncompromising schedule. Arkansas faces two College Football Playoff teams from a year ago, starting with the season opener against Cincinnati. The Razorbacks then take on a five-game stretch that features dates against Texas A&M and Alabama, followed by road games against Mississippi State, BYU and Auburn.
"It's a challenging schedule again," Pittman said. "I think this is the third year in a row, only been here three years, so I know it's the third year in a row that we've been awarded the toughest schedule in college football.
"All 12 of this year's opponents made postseason play last year."
In addition to the American Athletic Conference Bearcats, Arkansas faces independent powerhouse BYU, which is 21-4 the last two years, Liberty and Missouri State in non-conference play.
The storylines for two of those games will be rampant. Former Arkansas Coach Bobby Petrino will bring in Missouri State on Sept. 17 for a 6 p.m. game. Former Arkansas State and Ole Miss Coach Hugh Freeze will travel into town with Liberty on Nov. 5.
"We're excited about our non-conference opponents this year," Pittman said.
Catalon said the offseason buzz has been welcome.
"It's different for sure," he said. "You look at us a couple of years ago, and most people weren't picking us to win more than one or two games. Now you're looking at us, and everybody's comparing us with the top of the SEC.
"With some people we're still down low, but it doesn't matter to us. For us, it's just about football. We just want to put a ball out there and go play. It doesn't really matter about the standings or whether outside people validate us.
"At the end of the day, there's only one way to find out. You've got to put the ball down, and you've got to go play eventually. That's the moment I'm waiting for. When that time comes we'll see where we stack up at."
Arkansas at a glance
2022 schedule
All times Central
Date;Opponent;Time
Sept. 3;Cincinnati;2:30 p.m.
Sept. 10;South Carolina*;11 a.m.
Sept. 17;Missouri State;6 p.m.
Sept. 24 Texas A&M*#;TBA
Oct. 1;Alabama*;TBA
Oct. 8;at Mississippi State*;TBA
Oct. 15;at BYU;TBA
Oct. 29;at Auburn*;TBA
Nov. 5;Liberty;TBA
Nov. 12;LSU*;TBA
Nov. 19;Ole Miss*;TBA
Nov. 25;at Missouri*;TBA
#Arlington, Texas
*SEC game
Last season 9–4, 4-4 (t-3rd SEC West)
Coach Sam Pittman (12-11 in third year at Arkansas and overall)
Returning starters 10: Offense 6, defense 4
Key players QB KJ Jefferson, LB Bumper Pool, S Jalen Catalon, C Ricky Stromberg, RB Raheim Sanders, WR Jadon Haselwood, RT Dalton Wagner, DE Zach Williams
Offensive coordinator Kendal Briles (third year)
Defensive coordinator Barry Odom (third year)
SEC West title scenario
Arkansas’ schedule is as challenging as it gets, so winning “swing” games, as the Razorbacks did over Texas A&M, Texas, Mississippi State, LSU and Missouri last year, is paramount. Jefferson will need to stay healthy, the deep passing game will have to be a factor and the defense must generate a quality pass rush to give the Hogs a chance.
Junior KJ Jefferson said he is confident entering his second season as Arkansas’ starting quarterback. “So just being able to come in now and know that I have what it takes to be in this league,” he said. (AP/John Bazemore)