Arkansas HC Sam Pittman Tests Positive for COVID-19, Will Work Virtually

Arkansas announced Monday that head football coach Sam Pittman has tested positive for COVID-19 but is not symptomatic:

"I'm feeling great," Pittman said Monday. "I'm embarrassed. I wish I wouldn't have gotten the COVID. I haven't done anything different."

Pittman will work virtually during the week for team meetings, while defensive coordinator Barry Odom will become the team's interim coach.

"As far as the voice of the team this weekend, if I'm not there, it'll be Coach Odom," Pittman added. "He'll do a damn fine job, I'm sure."

Arkansas is scheduled to play at Florida on Saturday night.

Pittman becomes the third SEC coach to test positive for COVID-19 following Florida's Dan Mullen and Alabama's Nick Saban. Saban's test was later determined to be a false positive after five negative tests.

The 58-year-old Pittman is in his first year as a Division I head coach, taking over a squad that had gone 4-20 over the previous two years, including 0-16 in conference play. The Oklahoma native worked the previous four seasons at Georgia, where he was the offensive line coach and a recruiting extraordinaire. Before that, he was Arkansas' O-line/assistant head coach for three years.

The Razorbacks have been much more competitive in 2020, improving to 3-3 after Saturday's win over Tennessee. Each of the three losses (Georgia, Texas A&M and Auburn) have come against ranked opponents on the road.