College football has endured a plethora of changes in the past decade, leaving some aspects of the sport in limbo. Everybody has an opinion on things like the transfer portal, NIL, and bowl games. Arkansas Razorbacks head coach Sam Pittman has thoughts and voiced his support for bowl games during his response to a question at SEC Media Days.
Sam Pittman: ‘We Can Not Cut Any of the Bowls Out’
While responding to a question about the extra opportunities a 12-team College Football Playoff brings a school like Arkansas, as well as the current postseason format as a whole, Pittman took a few seconds — almost as an aside — to voice his support for bowl games.
Interestingly, he clarified that he wasn’t “just talking about the Rose and Orange” but also bowls like Duke’s Mayo Bowl and the Liberty Bowl — games that feature less successful teams.
For teams like Arkansas, Pittman argued, the extra practices are incredibly important.
“We cannot cut any of the bowls out,” Pittman said. “It’s a way to get your young kids better.”
That seems like a veiled shot at the argument that bowl games aren’t worth it because players opt out. For supporters of bowl games, bowl season is littered with young playmakers, and those games build excitement for the next season.
See Kansas State. Quarterback Will Howard had already entered the transfer portal, so freshman backup Avery Johnson started the Pop-Tarts Bowl in his place. Two-hundred forty-nine total yards and three touchdowns later, and Johnson was the talk of Big 12 Media Days this preseason.
New rules implemented a few years ago allow early enrollees in the incoming freshman class to practice with the team, almost a full month before players on non-bowl teams.
For a coach trying to build his team into a contender, it makes sense that Pittman would support bowl games. It doesn’t sound like the debate surrounding bowl games will go away, but it’s obvious they have a supporter in him.
College Football Network has you covered with the latest news and analysis, rankings, transfer portal information, top 10 returning players, the 2024 college football season schedule, and much more!