All Hogs

Pittman's Budget on NIL Having Effect on Players Coming, Going

First visit with coach after 25 players have departed and decisions they made regarding payments
Andy Hodges|
Arkansas Razorbacks coach Sam Pittman prior to the game against the Texas Longhorns at Razorback Stadium.
Arkansas Razorbacks coach Sam Pittman prior to the game against the Texas Longhorns at Razorback Stadium. | Nelson Chenault-Imagn Images

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Arkansas Razorbacks

FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. — At least now we have an idea what's going on with the number of football players leaving the Arkansas roster. It turns out at least some of the speculation was correct.

It doesn't mean seeing some key players leave any easier for him to take, though.

"It just comes down to a staff decision on are we going to be able to improve our team from 6-6 if we give this one, this one, this one, this one, the amount of money they’re … because they’re going to get better," he said Thursday afternoon. "The kids are going to get better. But how much better than the 6-6 can we get unless we go with portal available kids? We’ve been pretty good in the portal. As you know, our four All-SEC players were all transfer portal guys. We’re very confident that we can do that again."

The bottom line to that verbal cul-de-sac is they got players in the transfer portal last year, finished 6-6 and want to be better. They probably let some players leave and are going to focus on evaluating the ones they can bring in for a better result.

"Financially, it’s hard to get to better than .500 if you continue to pay a whole large pool of money," he said. "What we’re thinking to kind of cut that down and go out and get what we would consider huge difference makers. We’re going to have to get roster count, we’re going to have to do that as well. But yeah, I think in a nutshell that’s what we’re going to do."

Even though Pittman insists they have the resources to be competitive in the NIL world, there was no clarification on if that was chasing the biggest names or finding "difference-makers" nobody is thinking can do that for them.

Maybe the most annoying problem, though, is other SEC schools chasing players that enter the portal. Seeing his players going on visits to other league schools is probably maddening.

"I’m sure it’s frustrating to them whenever we do the same," he said..

Money is what the world of college football is these days and it is part of the equation having to rebuild a roster nearly every year now. Pttman insists, though none of that is due to the Razorbacks not having the resources.

"I do want to be very specific here: we have money," he said. "Our donors have been very good financially to us. Revenue sharing coming up here in July, we have money. We’re not losing these kids because we don’t have money. We’re losing them because what our value is compared to what maybe they can get elsewhere has been, at times, substantially different. We were a 6-6 football team and we’ve got money, and so we need to use it wisely."

In other words, the Hogs aren't going to pay some players what they want because Arkansas doesn't think they're worth that kind of money. That may sound harsh to some, but it's called business.

Whether you like it or not, the world of college sports is all about the money these days, The Razorbacks are just trying to make sure they're paying the right ones.

HOGS FEED:

• Malzahn, Petrino starting trend of coaches doing what they enjoy?

• Remember crushing of Kansas? This one was more impressive

• Distraught Hogs fans will never agree with departing players

• After another bad portal day, what will we hear today? | Locked on Razorbacks

• Shakespeare Could Not Have Penned Arkansas' Latest Story

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Andy Hodges
ANDY HODGES

Sports columnist, writer, former radio host and television host who has been expressing an opinion on sports in the media for over four decades. He has been at numerous media stops in Arkansas, Texas and Mississippi.

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