Sam Pittman said, after yesterday's loss at Missouri, "They out-physicaled us tonight on both sides of the ball."

by Otis Kirk

Sam Pittman has started making changes in his coaching staff with the firing of strength and conditioning coach Jamil Walker on Saturday.

The move comes one day after Arkansas lost to Missouri 29-27 with Pittman upset about his team being physically dominated.

“They played a very physical game,” Pittman said. “They out-physicaled us tonight on both sides of the ball. It’s unfortunate. We had several chances to win the game, but we couldn’t convert on offense and couldn’t stop them on defense. They had the more physical team tonight. 

“They whipped our butt. That’s what happened. They whipped us. They physically dominated us. They did it in the run game, and they did it in the protection game. I don’t know how else to say it. We got dominated physically is what happened.”

Walker was one of the first hires by Pittman when he arrived as head coach at Arkansas following the 2019 season. He brought Walker in from Georgia where Pittman had worked with him.

In March, Arkansas gave Walker a raise to $425,000 and extended his contract through February, 2024. He also got a raise when South Carolina showed interest in him.