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Arkansas

Sam Pittman says Arkansas has 'us against the world' mentality

On3-Social-Profile_GRAYby:On3 Staff Report•10/05/22
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Arkansas coach Sam Pittman yells at his defense in a 49-26 loss to Alabama on Oct. 1, 2022. (Wesley Hitt / Getty Images)

Arkansas is no longer ranked after dropping back-to-back games against Texas A&M and Alabama, but coach Sam Pittman has a mentality he’d like his team to embrace going into a road game at Mississippi State this weekend: Us against the world.

Asked if that was the mindset players should take into the game, Pittman agreed.

“Yeah, I think there’s a little bit to that,” Pittman said. “They’re playing extremely well and favored and all that kind of stuff. So there’s certainly in our realm of how we approach teams that are favored over us, which there’s been a bunch of them since I’ve been here.”

Mississippi State enters Saturday’s game against Arkansas in Starkville, Miss., as a current 7.5-point favorite, according to consensus lines provided by VegasInsider.com.

The Bulldogs are fresh off an impressive dismantling of Texas A&M, with quarterback Will Rogers dissecting the Aggies to the tune of 329 yards and three touchdowns without an interception.

Rogers has been excellent of late, throwing for 738 yards and nine touchdowns without a pick the last two weeks. He’ll be going against an injury-ravaged Arkansas secondary, a position group as banged up as just about any Pittman has been around in his more than 30-year coaching career.

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It’ll be a tall task for the Razorbacks.

Us against the world mentality for Razorbacks

If Arkansas is going to salvage the 2022 campaign, it probably needs to get things back on track this weekend.

The trip to Starkville is just the first of a three-game road trip, though there will be a bye weekend after the first two. Still, it’s a ranked Mississippi State this weekend, then a trip to No. 16 BYU the following.

Pittman needs to see his team move past the last two weeks in a hurry.

“We want to win every game, but obviously with the close game loss against A&M and then getting beat by Alabama, losses last a lot longer than wins do,” he said. “It’s just no fun when you lose. For the team, for any of us. But the bottom line is we have great opportunity against a good football team to go down there and play hard and win.”

If it takes thinking the world is against Arkansas, so be it.

The Razorbacks and Bulldogs are scheduled for a kickoff at noon ET on Saturday, with a broadcast slated for the SEC Network.