Pittman, Razorbacks Have to Figure out Cam Little Problem

Taking ball away from elite kicker led to huge drop in his points, team wins

Author:
Kent Smith
Updated:
Jul 25, 2023 10:05 AM EDT
Original:
Jul 25, 2023

In this story:

FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. – Coming into the 2022 season, there seemed to be little question Arkansas would have a decided advantage in close games because of the long range and accuracy of place kicker Cam Little.

Yet, four of the Razorbacks' six losses were decided by a field goal or less. The only close game Arkansas won was the 55-53 triple overtime game that was a 38-23 blowout well on its way to becoming a 45-23 win until a highly questionable review of a Matt Landers fumble at the Kansas 20 yard line set the table for a flurry of scores by Kansas in the final minute to force overtime.

Finding the answer to how Arkansas lost so many close games with such a valuable weapon is a priority for Pittman this season. Essentially, any time the Razorbacks drove inside an opponents' 40-yard line, there was a high chance Little could come away with points, so that provides a starting point.

Perhaps the issue was simply that the offensive line was so compromised by poor physical preparation in the weight room that driving from the 25 to inside the opponents' 40 yard line just wasn't feasible. However, a quick analysis shows an offense that was typically efficient, crossing into scoring territory regularly. Improving offensive line strength will help, but there appears to be a different culprit.

Week 1

In the opening game against Cincinnati, the Razorbacks had 10 drives. Six failed to get to the the Bearkats' 40. For much of the game, there was some sort of unseen wall at the 50-yard line. However, on all four times Arkansas punched through, the Razorbacks scored. Three times the Hogs scored a touchdown and Little kicked a 32-yard field goal with just over a minute left to proved a 7-point cushion that added pressure to the Cincinnati offense on its final drive.

Week 2

The trend of scoring every time the Arkansas offense made its way to the opponents' 40 yard line continued the second week against South Carolina. In a highly efficient scoring game, the Razorbacks broke the magical line on 9-of-12 drives. The first three of which were executed to perfection, building a quick 21-3 lead early in the second quarter.

However, the fourth trip down may have rattled Pittman's thought process. The Hogs overcame a penalty followed by an 18-yard sack to set up a 50-yard attempt by Little that sailed wide. The next time Arkansas broke the Gamecocks' 40-yard line, instead of taking the easy points to go up 24-16, Pittman opted to go for it on 4th & 1 at the South Carolina 19 yard line. The offensive line generated no push, leaving Jefferson short for no gain on a run up the middle.

Week 3

The Missouri State game pushed Arkansas hard. More drives failed to cross the Bears' 40 than did which had to be disturbing for a head coach who prides himself in building elite SEC offensive lines. The Razorbacks were still efficient, putting points on the board 4-of-6 times the Hogs did break the barrier. A fumble at the 1-yard line by Raheim Sanders allowed the Fighting Petrinos to build a 17-0 lead on the Top 10 Razorbacks.

When presented with an opportunity for Little to push the boundaries of his range with a 56-yard attempt to make it a one score game in the second quarter, Pittman opted against it. Perhaps with the 50-yard miss at South Carolina still in the back of his mind, Pittman chose to go for it on 4th & 9, hoping his offensive line could overwhelm Missouri State for a big gain. What ensued was a hand-off to the back-up running back Rashod Dubinion in a game where Sanders averaged over 10 yards per touch for just shy of 250 all-purpose yards. Needless to say, it didn't work. The Razorbacks got lucky that for the first time all night the defense acted like an SEC defense playing an FCS school, killing the drive quickly, or the game would have been too out of hand to escape with a win.

Week 4

Pittman passed up a possible kick attempt from the 39-yard line against Texas A&M, opting instead to punt rather than risk a 56-yard attempt. The only other drive that went inside the 40 that didn't result in points or a Little attempt was a fumble at the 3-yard line that was returned for a touchdown, preventing Arkansas from going into halftime up either 17-7 or 21-7.

Little's only attempt was a potential game-winner with 1:30 left. From 42 yards out, the kick hit the very top of the upright, glanced slightly inward, and fell just in front of the crossbars. It should be noted that had this game been played in Fayetteville or College Station, the kick would have been good as it would have sailed above the shorter college upright, which by rule is a good attempt.

The Rest of the Season

After starting 2-of-4 on the year, Little hit 11 of his next 12 attempts, including multiple 50+ attempts while going a perfect 50-of-50 on extra points. The 16 attempts were a significant drop from his career high of 23 in 2021. During that stretch, Pittman decided to go for it on fourth down rather than let Little try a field goal on seven occasions. All seven failed.

One particularly costly fourth down attempt came early against LSU. Instead of taking the chip shot to go up 6-0 on the eventual SEC West champions, the coaching staff put the ball in Malik Hornsby's hands. The previous two plays had netted -1 yard, including a loss by Hornsby on third down. The offensive line had nothing going that day. The trend held as the thin quarterback generated 0 yards when he needed three.

It was a choice that ultimately lost Arkansas the game, 13-10. It also kept Alabama out of the SEC championship game and the Razorbacks out of a nicer destination when bowl selection came around.

What About This Season?

Pittman said at SEC media days he intends to look into going for it on fourth down more, saying he wanted to get more into the analytics of the matter. Perhaps the odds will tell the Arkansas coach he should go for it less on fourth down.

However, typically when coaches start diving into these types of statistics, the number of times a team goes for it on fourth down on the opponent's end of the field goes up. That would mean taking the ball away from the team's third best offensive weapon more often.

Considering Little put points on the board 92% of the time when given the chance in the final eight games while the offense produced 0% of the time on fourth down, fans will be uneasy about this possible move no matter how much bigger strength coach Ben Sowders makes the Hogs. However, it remains to be seen how Pittman will interpret the numbers.

The one thing about statistics is a man can twist almost any results to fit his personal view. After all, 41% of marriages in the U.S. end in divorce, but that also means someone can choose to see it as 59% of all marriages end in death. It's all about perception.

As for Little, all he can do is hope he is perceived as too valuable of a weapon to shelve even further this coming season. His production was down 20 points last season, and it's unlikely the Razorbacks can stand to lose another 20 points and be successful in 2023.