When all the excitement dies down and the chants of “Woo Pig, Sooey” drift silently into the forgotten Ozarks, Arkansas still has to look itself in the mirror.
That’s something the new Razorbacks’ coach probably avoids doing these days.
How could he? When you’ve signed three contracts for 20 years of service to three different employers in the past 18 months, how can you look at yourself? How can you sleep at night?
Before we slide into full argument mode, we need to get one thing clear: I do not fault Bobby Petrino — aka Pignocchio – for tossing aside the Big Peach for all its worms. When you enter a situation with one of the most exciting, entertaining (albeit underachieving) and marketable superstars in Michael Vick, and he ends up stabbing your franchise in the back, all bets — and contracts — are off. When superstars on the team publicly question your decision-making and personnel moves and vehemently attack you in the press, what can you do? The river of loyalty flows both ways.
But let’s not make Petrino out to be a victim here. Please.
He assured Rich McKay and Arthur Blank he was staying in Atlanta as late as Monday night. He said he was staying in Louisville hours before going to Atlanta. He lies. It’s what he does.
That’s where I’m going next. Over there!
When it comes to worms in the Big Peach, Petrino may be the biggest, especially when a good and decent man who cares more about his franchise and fans than most trusts you with his team and you stab him as soon as he rushes to support you.
Those three contracts Petrino SIGNED in the past year and a half were worth more than $64 million. We’re not talking about small potatoes here.
In any profession, you are warned against leaving places without paying your dues first. You can become labeled as a “job-jumper,” therefore making you less attractive as a candidate for a job down the road. What does this make Petrino? He is proving himself to be unworthy of any trust, and any fan who cares about his program should be on high alert with him leading it.
This is a high-stakes game that Petrino is playing, and if you bet the house, you should prepare to lose the house.
Bobby? Is that you back there?
Alabama is walking that slippery slope right now, and the reward can assuredly outweigh the risk. If the rewards become reality, then you look safe and smart. But when the risk becomes reality, you’re left as much at fault for making the decision as the coach is for walking away.
All of this brings us to Arkansas. Did they upgrade from Houston Nutt? Probably so. But they lost any possible peace of mind, whether they want to admit it or not. Standing in front of the oinking masses last night, Petrino had this smug grin on his face, a grin that looked to me like it said, “I’m in control.”
Falcons and Cardinals remember this grin
That’s a good thing. And that’s a bad thing. Just ask Louisville. Just ask Arthur Blank.
So Petrino wanted to be back in the college coaching forum? Really? Or was he just looking to get out of a sinking ship which every week had more holes blown in it, holes that were not only being inflicted by the media over the Vick controversy and by superior football teams, but by its own idiotic and defiant players.
What did Bobby Petrino really accomplish at Louisville? Rather than face the inevitable hard times that come with rebuilding, he bolted. What did Bobby Petrino really accomplish at Atlanta? He proved that he is consistently a liar, that he has no moral guide, no backbone, no regard for public perception or contractual obligations. And that he’ll leave at the first sign of tumult.
With Darren McFadden and maybe Felix Jones going pro, THIS is what the Hogs have to look forward to?
Bobby Petrino has regard for Bobby Petrino and Bobby Petrino alone.
Is Arkansas the top of the collegiate food chain? Hardly. One thing Alabama has going for it is Saban’s age. Why would he leave now? Where would he go? Why would he not want to cement his legacy? What more could he want financially? He’s in a place where he can be revered and lauded for turning around a once-proud program.
What does Arkansas have? It has money, sure. It has some prestige, sure. It is in the SEC, sure. But the most alarming thing about this whole deal is that Petrino actually took a pay cut to leave Atlanta for Arkansas. It’s not about the money. It’s about control. It’s about avoiding controversy. It’s about Bobby Petrino.
Petrino made several interesting comments in his Tuesday night press conference, but one thing stood out to me: He said at one point, “I like to speak softly and carry a big stick.”
Watch out, Hogs. He’ll hit you in the knees with it when you least expect it.
How long will it be before Hogs fans feel like Nancy Kerrigan?
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I hate agreeing with you, but excellent post.
I’m pretty sure that it’ll be a long time before another college head coach is hired at the pro level. Heck, it may be a long time til a college head coach entertains an offer from the pros. It takes a special breed of person to manage the egos in any major pro sport.
I thought that last season after Saban, and then a couple days later Petrino goes to Atlanta and Kiffin goes to Oakland (and he’d never been an HC anywhere and is MY AGE). That’s one way the pendulum has swung recently. It seemed like before, the NFL was just rotating coaches, and the college game was all about finding the next hot coach (Stoops, Tressel, Cutcliffe, Richt, Petrino, Shul…nevermind). Now those roles have been reversed.
Better hope Big Blue doesn’t pony up with some long green, or he’ll be in Michigan so fast that “Broyle” won’t have time to even change his Depends.
The stigma of job-jumping doesn’t count in sports, only in real life. And while Les Miles keeps singing the tune o’ the day to whichever program he’s on the phone with, he’ll probably be the next turncoat in the coaching turnstile. It’s never-ending.
I am sick and tired of one sided arguements when it comes to Petrino.
Yeah, he jumped ship with Louisville. How many of you high and mighty people would not do the same if offered that much of a raise. Don’t lie to yourself.
Yeah, he jumped ship with Atlanta. Do you know the situation of the leaving other than what you hear on the “Everbody Slam Petrino Network” or ESPN for short. Do you know the involvement of Jerry Jones and his talks with the Atlanta Falcon organization to give up Petrino so that he could come to Jones’ alma mater. Poor McKay and Blank (gosh I had a hard time typing poor and those two names that close together). If it was the other way around and he was fired during mid-season, not a word would have been said. Double standard.