SEC Unfiltered: Arkansas football wisely protects its investment in Sam Pittman

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MIRAMAR BEACH, FLA. - Relative to the cost of investment, Arkansas' hire of coach Sam Pittman has proven to be a savvy move. Pittman's $2.925 million salary last season ranked 12th among the SEC's 13 public-school coaches, and the Razorbacks won nine games in Pittman's second season.

Now, he's getting rewarded.

Arkansas announced on Thursday a new five-year deal for Pittman. Including retention pay, he'll earn $6 million in 2022, shifting him into the middle of the pack for SEC football coaching salaries. Pittman is eligible for a one-year extension during the deal based on performance.

“It’s important for us and for Sam to show an investment in our program," Arkansas athletics director Hunter Yurachek told me Thursday at the SEC spring meetings, where school officials and Pittman signed the contract.

"We want our football program to be a success, and we have a long history of success in our football program, and I think making an investment in your head coach – and not only him, but the coaching staff, as well – is significant. We want this to succeed.”

Smartly, Arkansas is protecting its investment. Like Pittman's previous deal, this fresh deal features a non-compete clause that prevents Pittman from pursuing or accepting a job with another SEC team while he's employed by the Razorbacks.

Such a clause isn't unique at Arkansas, Yurachek explained to me.

“We have that in a majority of our head coaching contracts, and it’s to protect the University of Arkansas," Yurachek said.

"We’ve got some great coaches that are going to be sought after by other schools, potentially within our league, that may have more resources to pay those coaches. But we’ve invested in all of our sports programs and believe that we don’t want our coaches leaving to go to another school that we compete against on a regular basis. That’s a clause that has existed at the University of Arkansas well before I got there.”

Coaches, even those with good jobs, are known to job hop.

See Brian Kelly going from Notre Dame to LSU or Lincoln Riley spurning Oklahoma for Southern Cal.

Pittman's non-compete only applies to SEC institutions, but within a few years, the conference also will include Oklahoma and Texas – meaning most of college football's best jobs are housed within this league.

You'll recall last fall there was speculation about whether Texas A&M coach Jimbo Fisher could be lured to LSU. Fisher stayed put, but such a possibility would have been moot had Fisher's contract featured an SEC non-compete.

Georgia men's basketball hired Mike White in March from SEC rival Florida.

Again, a non-compete would prevent such a move.

Yurachek believes in the hire he made 2½ years ago, and he doesn't want anyone plundering his Head Hog. The language in Pittman's contract helps protect Arkansas' investment.

Blake Toppmeyer is an SEC Columnist for the USA TODAY Network. Email him at BToppmeyer@gannett.com and follow him on Twitter @btoppmeyer. If you enjoy Blake’s coverage, consider a digital subscription that will allow you access to all of it.

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY NETWORK: Sam Pittman contract with Arkansas football protected by non-compete