Through five games, there’s no arguing that this season has gotten off to a disappointing start for [autotag]Arkansas football[/autotag]. The hopes of seeing the program take that next step into competing for an SEC West title have quickly changed to hopes that they can just make a bowl game.
Following last Saturday’s loss to Texas A&M, where the Arkansas offense was only able to score a single touchdown, it became apparent that fans aren’t the only ones frustrated with how this season is going.
Shortly after the game, Rob Mason, a student at the University of Arkansas, shared screenshots of what appeared to be an email exchange between himself and offensive coordinator [autotag]Dan Enos[/autotag]. The screenshots show that the exchange took place at 3:50 p.m. on Saturday – just a little over one hour from the end of Arkansas’ loss to Texas A&M in Arlington. The content of the emails wasn’t anywhere close to being illegal or scandalous, but the optics weren’t great – if they were actually sent by Enos.
Dan Enos immediately responding to students via email. This program is so cooked pic.twitter.com/SoiHaw5AHu
— Rob Mason (@RobMason_02) September 30, 2023
Earlier this week, many were skeptical that Enos actually sent the emails because either the grammar was too unprofessional or he wouldn’t have been near a computer immediately following the game – despite the screenshots showing the emails were sent from an iPhone.
Then, on Thursday afternoon Mason Choate of Arkansas’ Rivals.com affiliate was able to confirm, through a Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) request, that the emails were indeed sent by Enos.
Again, the nature of the exchange wasn’t anything bad and Enos didn’t inherently do anything wrong.
So, why does it matter?
In the grand scheme of things it really doesn’t matter. However, as I mentioned earlier, the optics of the situation are awful. When you’re an offensive coordinator at the SEC level, messaging an upset 19-year old student about plays that you called in a game less than two hours ago is a bad look.
It’s an especially bad look when the team is in the midst of a three-game losing streak, where the majority of the problems in those three games came from the offensive side of the ball. It’s a bad look and reflects poorly on the university and [autotag]Sam Pittman[/autotag]’s staff. Not to mention, all of this comes just weeks after Pittman was scrutinized for deactivating his own Twitter (X) account following the loss to BYU.
Look, I get it. Enos is a human being and has every right to be frustrated with fan criticism – no matter if it’s warranted or not. But Enos took over an offense that was one of the best in the SEC last season and they’ve failed to even come close to that success nearly halfway through the year. Criticism from fans should be expected. It’s not like it’s his first rodeo in Fayetteville, either.
Instead of focusing on the issues that were plaguing his offense against the Aggies, Enos was more concerned about what a student’s play call would be on 4th and 1. Instead of focusing solely on an important road game against Ole Miss, Enos’ antics have become the type of “noise” that coaches love to tell their players they need to “block out.”
If the Arkansas offense continues to struggle, the criticism is only going to continue to grow. If the Hogs aren’t able to get this season turned around, then tough conversations are going to have to happen for everyone involved. Now, instead of being judged solely on the on-field product, Enos will have to answer for this blunder as well.
Do I believe he should be fired or, at least, disciplined for this incident? Definitely not. But if the on-field results from Enos’ offense continue to disappoint, this will almost certainly be factored in and rightfully so.