Pittman's improving Arkansas program faces daunting schedule

FILE - Arkansas receiver Treylon Burks (16) shakes off LSU defender Cordale Flott (25) as he runs for a touchdown during the first half of an NCAA college football game in Fayetteville, Ark., in this Saturday, Nov. 21, 2020, file photo. Burks is the returning SEC leader in receiving yards per game after catching 51 passes for 820 yards and seven touchdowns in nine games in 2020. (AP Photo/Michael Woods, File)

FILE - Arkansas head coach Sam Pittman speaks to reporters during an NCAA college football news conference at the Southeastern Conference media days in Hoover, Ala., in this Thursday, July 22, 2021, file photo. Arkansas is feeling good about coach Sam Pittman after last season’s 3-7 campaign produced much more competitive football than in recent years. (AP Photo/Butch Dill, File)

FILE - Arkansas running back Trelon Smith (22) carries the ball against Auburn during the second quarter of an NCAA college football game in Auburn, Ala., in this Saturday, Oct. 10, 2020, file photo. When Rakeem Boyd left the team after a 63-35 loss to Florida, Smith owned the starting job. He hasn’t come to close to giving away the job in the fall after finishing 2020 with 710 yards and five touchdowns on 134 carries. (AP Photo/Butch Dill, File)

FILE - Arkansas quarterback K.J. Jefferson scrambles during the first half of an NCAA college football game against Missouri, in Columbia, Mo., in this Saturday, Dec. 5, 2020, file photo. Junior Jefferson will start for just the second time in his career. (AP Photo/L.G. Patterson, File)