Arkansas coach Sam Pittman was on the hot seat of the week.
Notre Dame routed Arkansas 56-13 in Week 5 – a blowout loss that came one week after the Razorbacks lost 32-31 to Memphis. Arkansas (2-3) is on a three-game losing streak, and five of their last seven opponents are ranked in the AP Top 25.
On Sunday, Arkansas then officially parted ways with Pittman, announcing that OC Bobby Petrino will take over as interim head coach for the remainder of the season. Pittman, who took over in 2020, was 32-34. The Razorbacks also had a 14-29 record in SEC play.
There are some intriguing candidates for Arkansas with the school deciding to make a move. With Pittman now the first SEC coach fired in the 2025 college football season, we take a closer look.
MORE; Will Arkansas fire Sam Pittman after ND loss?
What is Sam Pitman's buyout at Arkansas?
Pittman had a unique loophole in his contract that altered his buyout based on his winning percentage since 2021. If his record was .500 or above, Arkansas owed Pittman $9.8 million. If it was below .500 – and he was at 29-27 – then that buyout would have dropped to $6.9 million. With the timing of his firing, Arkansas appeared to be taking the more expensive buyout.
MORE: Sam Pittman buyout, contract details
Arkansas coaching candidates to replace Sam Pittman
Rhett Lashlee, SMU coach
Lashlee, 42, is the most coveted choice. He was a backup quarterback at Arkansas – and he was a GA with Arkansas in 2006. Lashlee was the offensive coordinator at Auburn from 2013-16, but it's his impact as a first-time head coach at SMU that has been even more impressive. The Mustangs made the College Football Playoff in their first season in the ACC. Would Lashlee entertain this offer to move into the SEC? He is 31-14 in four seasons at SMU.
Gus Malzahn, Florida State offensive coordinator
Malzahn, 59, would be the other logical candidate, and we've tried to make this match in the past. Malzahn played two seasons at Arkansas in 1984-85, and he gained fame as the offensive coordinator and head coach for Auburn. He led Arkansas State to a 9-3 record in 2012. Malzahn left UCF to be the offensive coordinator at Florida State. Does he have one more head coaching job left in him with the home-state pull? He's 105-62 in 13 years and led Auburn to the 2013 national title game.
Jon Sumrall, Tulane coach
Sumrall, 43, played at Kentucky – but he has been on the SEC radar the last few coaching carousels. He is 35-10 between stops at Troy and Tulane, and he was an assistant coach at Ole Miss and Kentucky before taking his first head-coaching job. The Green Wave averaged 35.1 points per game last season and had two victories against Power 4 schools this year.
Ryan Silverfield, Memphis coach
The Tigers won double-digit games each of the last two seasons and are off to a 4-0 start – which included that victory against Arkansas last week. Silverfield, 45, is one of the most-proven G4 coaches, and he would be a make-sense candidate for the Razorbacks as a result. Memphis beat Florida State in 2024 and lost to Missouri by a touchdown in 2023.
Tyson Helton, Western Kentucky coach
Helton, 48, was an offensive coordinator at Tennessee for one season before taking the Western Kentucky job. He has led the Hilltoppers to a 51-33 record – and Western Kentucky has had a winning season in five of those six years in Conference-USA. The Hilltoppers have averaged 30-plus points in four of the last five seasons, too. Helton has a good reputation with quarterbacks.
BENDER: Kalen DeBoer will always be close to the hot seat at Alabama