The Arkansas Razorbacks are looking for their next head coach after firing Sam Pittman on Sunday, just a day after a blowout loss to Notre Dame in Fayetteville. There will be plenty of speculation of who Arkansas will go after to replace Pittman, but some of the names mentioned are coaches the Razorbacks should actually avoid if they truly want to turn things around.
Mike Gundy, Former Head Coach, Oklahoma State
Mike Gundy is on the market and could even be an easy transition after getting fired by Oklahoma State just last week.
Gundy built Oklahoma State into a nationally relevant program and gave the Cowboys consistency as their leader for 21 seasons, which is what Arkansas and any program would want. However, this is a new era of college football, and Gundy has not proven to be the same program builder in the age of NIL and the Transfer Portal, which is what led to his doom in Stillwater. Gundy has also never had to coach through a schedule as daunting as the Razorbacks get handed yearly in the SEC.
Jon Gruden, Former NFL Head Coach
Jon Gruden's name will be mentioned with every head coach opening this season. He would certainly be a splash hire, but the Razorbacks want success, not headlines.
Gruden won a Super Bowl as the Tampa Bay Buccanners' head coach and proved to be a success in the pros, but he's never led a college program and hasn't been at that level since he was a wide receivers coach for Pittsburgh in 1991. Arizona State already tried the experiment of a former NFL coach turned media darling with Herm Edwards, and it did not go well.
Bobby Petrino, Offensive Coordinator/Interim Head Coach, Arkansas
As soon as Pittman was fired, offensive coordinator Bobby Petrino stepped in as interim head coach. Petrino has already been Arkansas' head coach in 2008-11, which is why he'll be a presumed top candidate with that connection and the fact he's already in place. However, there's a reason people shouldn't get back with their exes. Arkansas already gave Petrino a shot, and second chances rarely work out in these situations.
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