Pitt athletic director Jeff Long is expected to accept an offer from the University of Arkansas and become the Razorbacks' new athletic director, sources at Pitt and Arkansas confirmed yesterday.

One Pitt official said yesterday that he expects Long to accept Arkansas' offer and that it could be a done deal by Tuesday. Another source in Arkansas told the Morning News of northwest Arkansas yesterday that Long will accept the offer.

Long was back in Pittsburgh yesterday one day after being courted on the Arkansas campus by Razorbacks officials. He was at the Pitt-Grambling football game at Heinz Field and briefly addressed the situation.

"As has been reported, I was asked by the University of Arkansas to come and talk to them about their director of athletics position," Long said. "I discussed it with Chancellor [Mark] Nordenberg, so I did go to Fayetteville [Friday] and discuss the job with the people at Arkansas.

"But now I am back here in Pittsburgh, focused on our student-athletes that are playing today at Heinz Field and up at the Field House where we have a volleyball tournament, and I am proud to be Pitt's athletic director. Beyond that, I really don't have anything else to say about the situation."

Long is in the final year of his contract at Pitt. He and Pitt were close to agreeing on a contract extension in May, but those negotiations fell through.

Long would replace Frank Broyles, who is stepping down Dec. 31.

Arkansas chancellor John A. White said he would like to hire someone by Oct. 1 because he wants the new athletic director to work closely with Broyles for a few months before taking over full time.

The Arkansas board of trustees meets Sept. 21, but by then the deal could be done, so that the board's action would only be a formality. If Long wants to accept the Arkansas offer, it could be a done deal within a few days.

Pitt could make a counter-offer to Long, but it is not known how much money Nordenberg is willing to spend to keep him. Long makes around $200,000 a year at Pitt.