Arkansas Coach Petrino is a sore loser after getting slaughtered by LSU 2011
Any way you slice it, it was an historic exit. At a late-night news conference in Fayetteville, Ark., on Tuesday, Dec. 11, 2007, Bobby Petrino told his audience: "Today was a day of decision. It was difficult on one side, very difficult on the other. It was difficult to leave Atlanta, the staff, the players, the fans. The timing of it probably is the thing that made it so difficult. Coming to Arkansas was the easy part."
Coach Bobby Petrino's last game with the Atlanta Falcons was a 34-14 blowout loss to the Saints in a Monday night game. He quit the team midseason on the next day to become head coach at Arkansas, where he now has the Razorbacks poised for a run at the BCS title. And that was only part of the story.
Here's the rest.
As these words were spoken, the Atlanta Falcons had no idea they were losing their head coach.
Because the Falcons had Tuesday off, there were no meetings, and Petrino did not address the team. It didn't know he had gone to Fayetteville to shake hands with the Hogs.
They were not officially informed until Wednesday, in a four-sentence farewell, a letter placed inside each player's locker stall.
It said:
"Out of my respect for you, I am letting you know that, with a heavy heart, I resigned today as head coach of the Atlanta Falcons. This decision was not easy, but it was made in the best interest of me and my family. While my desire would have been to finish out what has been a difficult season for us all, circumstances did not allow me to do so. I appreciate your hard work and wish you the best.
Sincerely, Bobby Petrino."
Talk about chaos.
In January 2007, Petrino had left Louisville to take over the Falcons for a five-year, $24 million contract in hopes he could help Michael Vick fulfill his potential as an NFL quarterback.
What Vick did that year was plead guilty to federal charges for bankrolling an illegal dog-fighting operation. When Petrino announced he was leaving the Falcons, Vick not only had not taken a snap for Petrino, he was being handed a 23-month sentence on those federal charges the very day Petrino was coaching his final game for the 3-10 Falcons, a 34-14 Monday night loss to the Saints in the Georgia Dome.
Needless to say, the manner in which Petrino handled a sudden departure to a 13-game career in Atlanta did not sit well with the Falcons' family.
Said owner Arthur Blank: "The best way to describe the way we feel is betrayal."
Said teammate Grady Jackson: "For him to quit like that shows his true colors, like a coward with a yellow stripe down his back."
Said quarterback Joey Harrington regarding Petrino's comments about his new job as Razorbacks coach: "To have him talk about family, about team, about commitment, then come in here and have a form letter at your locker, that's not a man's act. That's how a coward acts."
As Arkansas coach, let's say, Petrino acted impressively. His Razorbacks went from 5-7 to 8-5 to 10-3 and now find themselves at 10-1, No. 3 in BCS standings, in the hunt to win a national championship.
In his first tour of duty in the NFL, as offensive coordinator of the Jacksonville Jaguars, the head coach of the Jaguars at the time, Tom Coughlin, called him "the best play-caller I've ever been around."
That's what makes Friday's showdown in Tiger Stadium between the No. 1 and No. 3 teams in college football so fascinating.
Can the scheming boss of the top offense in the SEC, one averaging 39 points per game, outscore a team with a defense that has given up an average of 10 points per game?
Petrino's team has averaged 463 yards running and passing.
Miles' defense, in the hands of another schemer, John Chavis, has limited opponents to an average of 247.
From the day he took the Arkansas job, Petrino vowed aggressiveness, rushing and passing. And he has kept his word. It's a simple philosophy.
"You have to be able to run the football when you want to and run the football when you have to," he said, adding, "you also have to be able to pass the football when you want to and pass the football when you have to."
With a championship still up for grabs, we'll see what gives, not on a Saturday night, but this time on a Friday afternoon in Tiger Stadium.
Any way you slice it, it was an historic exit. At a late-night news conference in Fayetteville, Ark., on Tuesday, Dec. 11, 2007, Bobby Petrino told his audience: "Today was a day of decision. It was difficult on one side, very difficult on the other. It was difficult to leave Atlanta, the staff, the players, the fans. The timing of it probably is the thing that made it so difficult. Coming to Arkansas was the easy part."
Coach Bobby Petrino's last game with the Atlanta Falcons was a 34-14 blowout loss to the Saints in a Monday night game. He quit the team midseason on the next day to become head coach at Arkansas, where he now has the Razorbacks poised for a run at the BCS title. Here's the rest.
As these words were spoken, the Atlanta Falcons had no idea they were losing their head coach.
Because the Falcons had Tuesday off, there were no meetings, and Petrino did not address the team. It didn't know he had gone to Fayetteville to shake hands with the Hogs.
They were not officially informed until Wednesday, in a four-sentence farewell, a letter placed inside each player's locker stall.
It said:
"Out of my respect for you, I am letting you know that, with a heavy heart, I resigned today as head coach of the Atlanta Falcons. This decision was not easy, but it was made in the best interest of me and my family. While my desire would have been to finish out what has been a difficult season for us all, circumstances did not allow me to do so. I appreciate your hard work and wish you the best.
Sincerely, Bobby Petrino."
Talk about chaos.
In January 2007, Petrino had left Louisville to take over the Falcons for a five-year, $24 million contract in hopes he could help Michael Vick fulfill his potential as an NFL quarterback.
What Vick did that year was plead guilty to federal charges for bankrolling an illegal dog-fighting operation. When Petrino announced he was leaving the Falcons, Vick not only had not taken a snap for Petrino, he was being handed a 23-month sentence on those federal charges the very day Petrino was coaching his final game for the 3-10 Falcons, a 34-14 Monday night loss to the Saints in the Georgia Dome.
Needless to say, the manner in which Petrino handled a sudden departure to a 13-game career in Atlanta did not sit well with the Falcons' family.
Said owner Arthur Blank: "The best way to describe the way we feel is betrayal."
Said teammate Grady Jackson: "For him to quit like that shows his true colors, like a coward with a yellow stripe down his back."
Said quarterback Joey Harrington regarding Petrino's comments about his new job as Razorbacks coach: "To have him talk about family, about team, about commitment, then come in here and have a form letter at your locker, that's not a man's act. That's how a coward acts."
As Arkansas coach, let's say, Petrino acted impressively. His Razorbacks went from 5-7 to 8-5 to 10-3 and now find themselves at 10-1, No. 3 in BCS standings, in the hunt to win a national championship.
In his first tour of duty in the NFL, as offensive coordinator of the Jacksonville Jaguars, the head coach of the Jaguars at the time, Tom Coughlin, called him "the best play-caller I've ever been around."
That's what makes Friday's showdown in Tiger Stadium between the No. 1 and No. 3 teams in college football so fascinating.
Can the scheming boss of the top offense in the SEC, one averaging 39 points per game, outscore a team with a defense that has given up an average of 10 points per game?
Petrino's team has averaged 463 yards running and passing.
Miles' defense, in the hands of another schemer, John Chavis, has limited opponents to an average of 247.
From the day he took the Arkansas job, Petrino vowed aggressiveness, rushing and passing. And he has kept his word. It's a simple philosophy.
"You have to be able to run the football when you want to and run the football when you have to," he said, adding, "you also have to be able to pass the football when you want to and pass the football when you have to."
With a championship still up for grabs, we'll see what gives, not on a Saturday night, but this time on a Friday afternoon in Tiger Stadium.
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