Sam Pittman reveals message he sent to Cam Little after missing potential game-winning kick
Arkansas lost in heartbreaking fashion this weekend as they fell 23-21 to Texas A&M on Saturday. The Razorbacks had a chance to win the game late, as they put the game in the hands of kicker Cam Little with 1:35 left in the game to attempt a 42-yard field goal for the lead. Little missed the kick, as it took a strange and rare bounce off of the top of the upright. Head coach Sam Pittman explained what went wrong on the final play for Arkansas.
“He just pushed it a little bit, didn’t hit it real well, just pushed it a little bit and hit obviously the top of the goal post,” Pittman said.
The kicker position is one of the highest pressure positions in all of sports, and you can’t help but feel some sympathy for Little following his miss. Following the game Pittman gave Little some words of encouragement, trying to lift up his kicker and keep a good perspective on the situation.
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“After the game, I told him that he’s won a lot of games for us and he’ll win a lot more. He’s distraught, but he didn’t mean to miss it, it just didn’t go through and we had a lot more opportunities than just that,” Pittman said. “But it came down to that play, and we’re just unfortunate, but he’ll win a lot of ball games for us before his career is over and he already has.”
Little had a fantastic freshman season last year and came up big multiple times for Arkansas. They’ll definitely need him as they continue forward in their difficult SEC west schedule, and hopefully, Pittman and the team can instill trust and confidence in Little moving forward following his recent late-game woes.
WATCH: Arkansas vs Texas A&M game ends with wild, wacky field goal miss
The Arkansas Razorbacks missed a game-tying field goal in the fourth quarter that missed after hitting the top of the goal post. With Arkansas trailing 23-21 against Texas A&M and time running out in the game, coach Sam Pittman played for the win off of kicker Cam Little‘s leg. Taking the clock down as low as possible before calling their last timeout with 1:35 left on the clock, Arkansas attempted a 42-yard field goal to take the lead over the Aggies.
The career 81.5 percent kicker missed the kick in the most unlikely of fashions — with the ball hitting the very top of the goal post and bouncing awkwardly backwards
As a result the Aggies were able to ice the game with the ball back and Arkansas only having one timeout remaining, winning 23-21 after trailing 14-0 early. The Aggies stopped a goal-line touchdown try by the Razorbacks in the second quarter by forcing a fumble that they returned the length of the field for a touchdown. Instead of entering the locker rooms with a potential 14-point deficit, Texas A&M managed to cut it to a one-point game.
The momentum carried through into the second half, where the Aggies defense held Arkansas to just another seven points and the long field goal try in the big win.