Above all else, Arkansas football coach Sam Pittman is a man of the people.
The 63-year-old brings an impeccable folksy charm to the podium, and is a perfect cultural fit for the Razorbacks. His rhetoric about being a “proud damn state” galvanizes the school’s proud damn fanbase and – although he’s far from an eloquent speaker, as he himself will tell you – he talks in layman’s terms that are much more palatable to the average fan than the usual coach speak you hear.
Pittman’s genuine southern hospitality has made him arguably the most likable SEC head coach since Ed Orgeron left LSU – regardless of Arkansas’ up-and-down results on the field in the last few years.