Petrino leaves Falcons, will coach Arkansas
FOXSports.com,









FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. - Barely 24 hours after another blowout loss with
the Atlanta Falcons, Bobby Petrino was back in college football
Petrino was hired Tuesday by Arkansas, capping a whirlwind day in
which he stunningly resigned from the Falcons after just 13 games.
Petrino succeeds Houston Nutt, who stepped down at Arkansas two weeks
ago and became the head coach at Mississippi.

"Today was a day of decision," Petrino said at a late-night news
conference in Fayetteville. "It was difficult on one side, very easy
on the other. It was difficult to leave Atlanta, the staff, players,
fans. The timing of it probably is the thing that made it most
difficult. Coming to Arkansas was the easy part."

Petrino got a five-year deal worth $2.85 million per year to take over
the Razorbacks, according an athletic department spokesman.

In January, Petrino left as head coach at Louisville to take over in
Atlanta, agreeing to a five-year, $24 million contract handed out by a
team that felt he could help Michael Vick reach his full potential.

However, the star quarterback came under investigation for a grisly
dogfighting operation that led him to plead guilty to federal charges.

On Monday, Vick was sentenced Monday to 23 months in prison without
ever taking a snap for Petrino. That night the Falcons lost to New
Orleans 34-14, and hours later Petrino left the team with a 3-10
record to return to the college ranks.

Petrino called a Falcons staff meeting late Tuesday afternoon, a
meeting which last about 10 seconds, sources told FOXSports.com's Jay
Glazer.


"He just said to us, 'Guys I've resigned, I'm going to Arkansas. I'm
sorry. I'll be talking with you guys in the future.' And with that he
turned and walked out the door. We haven't been told anything else,"
one assistant coach told Glazer.

At this point, the assistant coaches have not been told who will be
coaching the team going forward.

Petrino did not address the Falcons following his resignation. Players
are livid with the way Petrino left the team and several called his
handling of the situation "classless."

Arkansas had been looking for a coach for two weeks to replace Nutt,
who resigned after a tumultuous season of his own. The Razorbacks came
close to hiring Wake Forest's Jim Grobe last week, but Grobe remained
with the Demon Deacons and Arkansas fans had to wonder whether the
school could attract a big-name coach.

In Petrino, the Razorbacks found one. Petrino went 41-9 in four years
at Louisville, coaching some of the highest-scoring teams in the
country before leaving in January to join the Falcons.

In 10 seasons at Arkansas, Nutt built the Razorbacks into one of the
Southeastern Conference's top rushing teams. Tailback Darren McFadden
finished second in the Heisman Trophy voting the last two years, but
Nutt's teams often lacked balance. Petrino said his Arkansas teams
will be aggressive.

"You have to be able to run the football when you want to, and run the
football when you have to," Petrino told a crowd full of Razorbacks
supporters. "You have to be able to pass the football when you want
to, and pass the football when you have to."

Petrino said he didn't speak with anyone from Arkansas about the job
until Tuesday.

"It was one of the most difficult things I've had to do," he said. "I
truly believe from the bottom of my heart that I made the right
decision."

Jeff Long, Arkansas' incoming athletic director, handled the search
for a new coach. Long takes over for Frank Broyles, who is retiring at
the end of the year.

"It is a tremendous honor for me to be named the 30th head coach at
Arkansas, particularly on a night when we honored coach Broyles for
his 50 years of service," Petrino said, referring to former head
coach. "He's such a legend and I can't wait to develop a friendship
with him."

Long said he wasn't deterred as the search appeared to drag on and
many wondered if the Razorbacks needed to lower their standards.

"I wasn't listening or reading," Long said. "I was going to work to
find the best coach."

Petrino's stint in Atlanta was one of the shortest for a non-interim
coach since the 1970 NFL-AFL merger. Pete McCulley was fired after
starting out 1-8 with San Francisco in 1978, and Sid Gillman lasted
only 10 games in his second stint as San Diego coach, going 4-6 in
1971 before quitting.

In an interesting twist, Lou Holtz coached the New York Jets for 13
games in 1976. He went 3-10, then left the team with one game
remaining to become the coach at Arkansas.

Atlanta owner Arthur Blank and general manager Rich McKay were
scheduled to hold a news conference Wednesday. There was no immediate
word on who would take over for the team's final three games.

After losing Vick, Petrino tried three quarterbacks without success.
The Falcons have lost four straight, all by double-digit margins, and
are assured of the 32nd season of .500 or worse in their 42-year
history.

"Anytime you're without one of the best athletes in the National
Football League, it's going to be tough," cornerback DeAngelo Hall
said earlier in the season. "Take Peyton Manning from the Colts, and
they'll go through a little slump."

Arkansas played in the SEC championship game in 2006, but the
Razorbacks finished that season with three straight losses and Nutt
faced unrest from fans and dissension in the program.

Fans used the Freedom of Information Act to investigate Nutt's cell
phone records. As the team struggled this year, planes were spotted at
games towing anti-Nutt banners.

This season started with Nutt's long-term status shaky, and the mood
in Arkansas worsened when the Razorbacks began SEC play 0-3. They
finished strong, beating then-No. 1 LSU in their regular-season finale
to go 8-4.

However, within days of one of his biggest victories at Arkansas, Nutt
departed and defensive coordinator Reggie Herring was named interim
coach.

Herring will coach the 25th-ranked Razorbacks when they face No. 7
Missouri in the Cotton Bowl on Jan. 1. Then Petrino is the only person
in charge.

"I knew I wanted to come back and coach in college football," Petrino
said. "I'm very excited to get back and work with the student-
athlete."

Just two weeks ago, Bobby Petrino said he had no interest in any of
the high-profile college jobs that had opened up, and he apparently
told Blank in recent days that he would be staying with the Falcons.

"I haven't given it one bit of thought," Petrino said Nov. 26. "I
certainly don't want to get into any speculation and rumors and having
to deal with that. I'm focused on our football team here."

Petrino was the latest college coach to flop in the NFL.

Steve Spurrier quit after two mediocre years with the Washington
Redskins. Nick Saban made it through just two seasons with the Miami
Dolphins before returning to the college ranks at Alabama. Of course,
they look like long-term hires next to Petrino, who abandoned the
Falcons without even making it through one year.

The resignation of Petrino was another jarring blow to the Falcons,
who dealt with Vick's legal troubles since the first day of training
camp, when a plane flew overhead pulling a sign that said: "New Team
Name? Dog Killers?"

That was a far cry from Petrino's introductory news conference, when
he talked of his reasons for leaving Louisville.

"I was able to see the commitment that has been made here," he said.
"I believe this is truly the best football job in the NFL. It was an
easy decision for me."

Of course, he had no idea what Vick was doing in his spare time.

Petrino leaves with the third-worst winning percentage among Atlanta
coaches. Only Norb Hecker, who was 4-26-1, and Marion Campbell, who
went 17-51 in two stints as head coach, rank below Petrino's .231
mark.

Atlanta also was plagued by injuries on the offensive line, which
forced Petrino to start two players who weren't even drafted out of
college.

The resignation had to be a major surprise to Blank, who fired Jim
Mora just two seasons after he led the Falcons to the NFC championship
game, and lured Petrino with a lucrative contract.

Before Monday's game, Blank said he felt better than ever about his
decision to hire Petrino given all the adversity the team faced this
season.

"I feel real fortunate we have a terrific guy leading our team, our
CEO, in Bobby Petrino," Blank said. "I think he's proven to me he's a
better head coach than we thought he was going to be, dealing with a
set of cards we didn't see unfold this year, which probably never in
the history of the NFL has anything like this happened. Bobby has done
a wonderful job dealing with all of these issues. He's kept the
players focused."

But there were signs of dissension, especially in the way Petrino
dealt with his players.

He ran the team with an aloof style, feeling no reason to share his
decisions on personnel with the affected players. He could walk
through the locker room without speaking to anyone and was openly
criticized by two of the team's stars, Pro Bowlers Hall and Alge
Crumpler.

Petrino drew the ire of the veterans with his decision to cut nose
tackle Grady Jackson, one of the team's most productive defensive
linemen, during the bye week. Quarterback Joey Harrington was
noticeably perturbed a few weeks ago when, after leading the Falcons
to two straight wins, he heard from the media that Petrino still
considered injury prone Byron Leftwich the starter.

Against the Saints, the Falcons made another change at the most
crucial offensive position, giving Chris Redman his first start since
2002. While Redman threw for 298 yards and two touchdowns, the Falcons
lost again.




They have been outscored by an average of 18.5 points in their last
four defeats.

After the latest loss, Petrino sounded as though he was still
committed to getting the Falcons turned around.

"We'll come back on Wednesday to take a look at it, and then we'll get
back to work," he said. "We have to find something to rally around."

But clearly, Petrino already had decided to abandon the sinking ship.

The Associated Press and FOXSports.com's Jay Glazer contributed to
this report.

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