Sam Pittman addresses the belief that Arkansas should retire No. 5 for Darren McFadden

Arkansas recently announced that it would honor Darren McFadden by having the current players on the team that wear the No. 5 jersey also sport a decal featuring the initials ‘DM,’ with McFadden’s signature silhouette on it. It’s a unique way to honor his jersey number with the program while keeping it unretired.

Coach Sam Pittman was asked about the move and whether there were reasons not to outright retire his jersey. Whether those might be recruiting-related or otherwise, could the Razorbacks have done something different?

“I’ll say this: I think Darren can answer the question better than me,” Pittman said. “The No. 1 jersey that we get asked for is 5. And there’s a No. 1 reason why they want to wear 5. And it’s because the greatest, one of the greatest, however you want to look at it, player in the history of Arkansas wore 5.”

Darren McFadden was one of the most electrifying players in the country — and in Arkansas school history — during his time in college. He burst onto the scene as a freshman in 2005. He earned Freshman All-America honors, as well as SEC Freshman of the Year and First-Team All-SEC honors.

It was only up from there. By the time he was finished, McFadden had run for 4,590 yards and a school record 41 touchdowns.

As for the way Arkansas is honoring him, Pittman seemed to believe Darren McFadden would be a big fan. It’s a cool way to keep his legacy alive while also inviting current players to share in that history.

“Now if you look at it and you’re in the Hall of Honor, you know what I mean, you’ve got your jersey up there, but somebody’s got their patch on there and the number’s still out there, I think that would be really cool,” Pittman said. “You would have to ask him. But I think that would be really cool.”

This much is clear: Darren McFadden was a monster in college. And Arkansas is recognizing that.

Pittman had a chance to sit down with him recently before the move was announced by the program. His conversation with McFadden was revealing.

“Here’s what I do know: that when we were able to visit with him this year, Hunter Yuracheck and myself, when we were able to visit with him it hit him,” Pittman said. “That’s what you want, you know? It hit him. For whatever reason, he’ll have to tell you, but it hit him, which then hit us.

“But I think that was a great idea. Well earned and I think that he likes it. You’ll have to talk to him, but I think he liked it that his number’s still out there but yet his jersey is somewhere else. I think it’s really cool, to be honest with you.”