Sam Pittman calls it special that Charleston Collins remained committed to Arkansas

Arkansas Razorbacks head coach Sam Pittman called it special that defensive lineman Charleston Collins chose to stay committed to Arkansas and signed on National Signing Day.

This came amid some fear that he may flip his commitment when wide receiver Courtney Crutchfield did because the two had been seen as a pair. However, Collins did stay with the Razorbacks, which was huge for Pittman.

“Guys, let’s face the facts, with our year that we had it affected, I mean it affected a lot of things,” Sam Pittman said. “And with our kids in the state that stayed with us with all the noise going on around the program, I mean that’s big time for loyalty. Because we didn’t sign anybody that didn’t have several offers from the state of Arkansas everywhere else.”

The 2023 season was a frustrating one for Pittman and the Razorbacks. In his fourth season and after back-to-back winning seasons, Arkansas struggled to a 4-8 record. In particular, the Razorbacks struggled on the offensive side of the ball, prompting Pittman to make a change at offensive coordinator during the season.

Collins is a four-star recruit, according to the On3 Industry Ranking. A Pine Bluff, Arkansas native, several SEC schools were trying to flip Collins’ commitment. He’s also the top-ranked recruit in Arkansas’ 2024 recruiting class.

Collins is one of five high school recruits from the state of Arkansas to sign with the Razorbacks, along with Braylen Russell, Wyatt Simmons, CJ Brown, and Kobe Branham.

“With Charlie, he probably was at the top of that. Wyatt Simmons had a tremendous amount, Braylen. All these guys. And for them to stay here just proves that they’re going to be damn good Hogs because they wanted to be here. With Charlie staying with us, that was special — him and the other four, as well. The other four besides him.”

Arkansas currently has the 28th-ranked recruiting class in the country and the 15th-ranked recruiting class in the SEC.

Sam Pittman shares KJ Jefferson’s transfer decision was understood by Arkansas

Arkansas lost long-time starting quarterback KJ Jefferson to the transfer portal. It was a decision that Sam Pittman says the program understood.

“Yeah, I mean it was basically whenever we had our exit meeting,” Pittman said. “We knew that he was going to go explore other colleges. That was kind of understood that that’s what he was going to do.”