Sam Pittman: Arkansas offense 'lost our spirit' under former coordinator Dan Enos

Arkansas football coach Sam Pittman offered yet more insight on Wednesday as to why things didn't work out with offensive coordinator Dan Enos, who was fired after coaching only eight games in Fayetteville.

The Razorbacks (2-6, 0-5 SEC) struggled in a 7-3 loss to Mississippi State last Saturday, and Arkansas' offense also ranks last in the SEC in yards per game (305.9 yards per game), and 119th in FBS. But for Pittman, there was a more telling sign that led to Enos' exit.

More: Stubbornness cost Dan Enos his job, Arkansas football coach Sam Pittman hopes to avoid same fate

“Maybe that’s part of it, but I just think everything was hard for us," Pittman said Wednesday on the SEC coaches teleconference. "Everything was very difficult. Three yards was difficult. I don’t know exactly why because Dan’s a fine coach.

"I can’t really put my finger on it, but I do know that we lost our spirit. How we did that I really can’t put a finger on that, but we’ve got to get it back.”

REQUIRED READING: Why did Arkansas fire Dan Enos? Offense, Mississippi State loss led to Sam Pittman decision

Enos spent the 2021 and 2022 seasons as the offensive coordinator at Maryland before being hired to Arkansas prior to 2023. He was also the offensive coordinator at Arkansas from 2015-17 and associate head coach/quarterbacks coach at Alabama in 2018.

Pittman admitted he wasn't quite sure why Enos' short tenure didn't work out. However, he noted multiple offensive shortcomings that led to the decision to fire him just eight games into his second tenure at Arkansas.

More: What to know about Arkansas football's new OC Kenny Guiton

“I can’t really put my finger on it, because he’s a hell of a coach, a good man and has had great success in his career,” Pittman said. “I really don’t know. Maybe we aren’t a pocket protection team. We ran it, I don’t know, probably averaged eight to 10 dropbacks per game in the previous three years, maybe a little bit more when Feleipe (Franks) was here.

"It’s just our quarterback (KJ Jefferson) wasn’t great at just sitting in the pocket. Our wideouts weren’t getting open. We couldn’t protect. A lot of things.”

Enos' interim replacement is receivers coach Kenny Guiton, who joined Arkansas' staff in 2021. Guiton notably played quarterback at Ohio State from 2009-13.

This article originally appeared on Nashville Tennessean: Sam Pittman: Arkansas football 'lost our spirit' with Dan Enos as OC