Dan Mullen on Kyle Pitts Status, Sam Pittman, vs. Barry Odom

Florida No.6 (4-1) could be without star tight end Kyle Pitts when they host Arkansas (3-3) on Saturday.

Pitts is questionable for the game after suffering a concussion against Georgia, taking a targeting shot from safety Lewis Cine midway through the second quarter. Pitts has 24 catches for 414 yards and set the school record in one season for tight-end touchdown receptions (8) against the Bulldogs.

He’s one of three Gators on the injury report this week.

“Kyle will be questionable this week with a concussion, so he will be questionable for the game,” UF coach Dan Mullen said on Monday. “Jeremiah Moon injured his foot, I think he will doubt that we play this week, then Stewart Reese will also be questionable, he had a shoulder problem.”

Two plays after Pitts left the game, junior Redshirt tight end Kemore Gamble caught a 24-yard touchdown – the first of his career. He finished with three catches for 51 yards and runner-up Keon Zipperer also received a 39-yard reception.

“Kyle is a great player. They know that. We present it. You watch, he comes out and Kemore has a great game. Zip has a grip and a long run afterwards it did a great job of blocking. They performed very well on the pitch, ”said Mullen.

“For me, these guys just have to come up and we’re going to launch our attack. It’s their opportunity to play games, their opportunity to show what they can do on the pitch. Every year you have the mentality of the next man.

UF still have Brenton Cox Jr. and Khris Bogle at BUCK with Moon absent, while Josh Braun has replaced Reese as the starting right-wing goalie against UGA. Mullen liked what he saw from the first-year lineman who was previously involved with the Bulldogs.

“I think it was huge,” Mullen said of Braun’s play. “He’s a guy who took an opportunity this year due to injuries and other things to prepare properly.

“He’s a very smart guy with a great work ethic; took the opportunity to be there in the field. When his number was called, he was ready to step in and play.

Arkansas announced Monday that freshman coach Sam Pittman had tested positive for COVID-19.

He is asymptomatic and isolating at home, but will not be able to train against Florida. Mullen, who contracted the virus last month, opened his press conference with prayers for Pittman.

“After going through it, I hope he has minor symptoms like me,” Mullen said. “It really wasn’t a difficult event. I know a lot of people have had a hard time dealing with it, and then obviously the gravity of it for a lot of other people and families. So our prayers with him and I hope he will recover quickly.

Pittman, the former Georgia offensive line coach, is an SEC Coach of the Year candidate for his Arkansas turnaround. He inherited a 2-10 Razorbacks team and took them to 3-3 this season, including a 21-14 win over Mississippi State that ended a 20-game losing streak in the SEC.

“He obviously knows how to win. He makes them play hard, believing, ”Mullen said of Pittman. “I think he came and did a great job putting the guys in a position to do what they’re good at. One of the keys is to create a winning mindset. And if you see this year they are playing with that winning mindset and have really succeeded.

“They have some really good defensive guys. They play with the strength of their high school and are one of the best interception teams in the country. They are good physical tacklers. Linebackers are two excellent players. Excellent, excellent football players. And then they have disruptive defensive linemen up front on the defensive side of the ball. They fit into the attack. I know they will run the ball well. And, of course, Feleipe [Franks] directs the offensive rather well.

Arkansas defensive coordinator Barry Odom will be the interim coach on Saturday.

Odom spent four seasons as Missouri coach before his dismissal last year. He led the Tigers to an 8-5 record in 2018, beating Mullen and the No.13 Gators on the return, 38-17.

“I know Barry very well. Barry has obviously been a head coach in this league, understands the league, ”Mullen said. “Good coach, good motivator. A tough guy. He is not going to enter a scene that is going to seem awkward or different to him. I can guarantee it.

“I know Barry as a professional will also carry this message that Sam is giving. They won’t change the personality they have as a team if Barry is just to handle the game. They are not going to change the mindset that Sam has already built here and the purpose of the program.

Pittman’s positive test leaves the potential for an outbreak on the Razorbacks football team. Mullen said no contingency plan has yet been worked out with Arkansas regarding the game.

“No, not at all,” Mullen said. “You’re definitely hoping Arkansas will be able to pull through this. That’s kind of how the year is right now. So, I hope it’s a very isolated deal for them and for their team. We went through it. It’s a really tough business for the team with everything going on.

“I hope they can get through this. Otherwise we have to try to mix some things up. I’m sure they’ll let us know pretty quickly. We are going to play against whom we have to play.