Atlanta Falcons hire Bobby Petrino

[Logan]

Yeah, he'll be interesting to follow. I don't think he'll slip into the 3rd round though, unless a physical shows something really bad. A team like the Jets, with two 2nd round picks, would probably jump all over him.

[Ksyrup]

I wonder if he's an intriguing to Shanahan as Clarett was?

[Ksyrup]

I wonder if he's as intriguing to Shanahan as Clarett was?

[timmynausea]

I see the points about Michael Bush, but he was a senior this past year, so he would be applying for an additional year in college. He thought long and hard about coming out last year, when he basically would've been a 2nd round pick, but was basically talked into staying and altering his running style so he could improve his stock. Instead he broke his leg.

He probably really regrets coming back and just wants to get out of there, especially since his coach is gone. 3rd round money is still a ton for a college kid, and I think Bush will turn out a lot better than Clarett. He's bigger (250) and faster than Maurice.

[Ksyrup]

He could be McGahee, who knows. It just sucks for him that the timing of his recovery is not going to maximize his draft potential, even if he comes back to 100% of what he was.

[JPhillips]

We're really not talking about a ton of money. Unless you're a top half of the first round pick your first contract isn't going to be overwhelming. If he's good he'll be able to make plenty of cash on his second contract.

[Logan]

Originally Posted by timmynausea

I see the points about Michael Bush, but he was a senior this past year, so he would be applying for an additional year in college. He thought long and hard about coming out last year, when he basically would've been a 2nd round pick, but was basically talked into staying and altering his running style so he could improve his stock. Instead he broke his leg.

He probably really regrets coming back and just wants to get out of there, especially since his coach is gone. 3rd round money is still a ton for a college kid, and I think Bush will turn out a lot better than Clarett. He's bigger (250) and faster than Maurice.

My only response to that is that he was also coming off a severe injury during his junior year. It's been awhile since he's been at full strength, and that might hurt him come draft time. A full year injury-free can make him a top 10 pick next year, probably right behind McFadden at RB.

Of course, the obvious counterpoint to that is...if he goes back and gets hurt again, it could be a "3 strikes and you're out" scenario where no team will look at him next year. So in that case, it would be a good move to go now.

[miami_fan]

Originally Posted by JonInMiddleGA

Heh.
http://www.ajc.com/sports/content/sp...gimmefive.html

Published on: 01/09/07

Louisville Courier-Journal columnist Rick Bozich gives us five things every Falcons fan should know about Bobby Petrino:

1. Don't believe the stories that he sleeps in his office during training camp. They're not true. Bobby Petrino doesn't sleep anywhere during training camp.

2. He'd rather visit his proctologist than visit with the media.

3. He'll wait until at least August until he listens to an offer for another job. Unless, of course, somebody contacts him in June or July.

4. Petrino is the Italian who coached in Louisville who did not wear the Brioni suits and Bruno Magli loafers.

5. He's not going to think these little lists are very funny, especially if they concern him.

Bump just to say this post is a whole lot funnier today than it was January!

[k0ruptr]

Originally Posted by waltwal

This guy is a good coach. That being said he is a major low-life. When he interviewed at Auburn behind the back of his "friend" Tommy Tuberville i lost all respect for this guy. This is a guy whose words are said to impress potential recruits and have nothing to do with truth and honesty. I don't care about Louisville but losing this guy is going to be for the good in the long run. Never, ever hire guys like this. There are enough good coaches out there whose word means something.

I don't blame him for saying things about staying at Louisville that he obviously did not mean because that is a necessity for recruiting. But i blame him for that Auburn affair and i would never touch a guy like this. Louisville will come out the winner in this deal..

wow. A+ on the homework.

[Tekneek]

Originally Posted by k0ruptr

wow. A+ on the homework.

Indeed. I hope this puts an end to NFL teams hiring these "next big thing" college coaches and give preference to those coaches that actually are already involved in the pro game and know how to handle professional players. If somebody on FOFC had such a good read on the character of this guy, how did Blank and McKay not get it? This should look bad for them as well. It's their job to not get schooled by an employee like this.

[Toddzilla]

Yeah - even after Petrino forcefully denied he had interviewed with Auburn officials, a reporter showed him the flight logs which showed Auburn chartered their private plane to fly from Auburn to the airport in Ohio just over the river from Louisville. Petrino still denied talking to Auburn officials, but after the reporter ran the story in the paper, Auburn admitted to interviewing Petrino, and then he came clean.

He's a scumbag.

[Toddzilla]

Dola - here's a wrinkle that may get some play today....

Seems Jerry Jones - Cowboy's owner and Arkansas alum - brokered the interview between Petrino and Arkansas. Jones didn't even speak to Arthur Blank about it, much less ask for permission to talk to Petrino about the Arkansas job.

[Subby]

[Radii]

Originally Posted by Toddzilla

Dola - here's a wrinkle that may get some play today....

Seems Jerry Jones - Cowboy's owner and Arkansas alum - brokered the interview between Petrino and Arkansas. Jones didn't even speak to Arthur Blank about it, much less ask for permission to talk to Petrino about the Arkansas job.

source?

[Tekneek]

Originally Posted by Toddzilla

Dola - here's a wrinkle that may get some play today....

Seems Jerry Jones - Cowboy's owner and Arkansas alum - brokered the interview between Petrino and Arkansas. Jones didn't even speak to Arthur Blank about it, much less ask for permission to talk to Petrino about the Arkansas job.

According to the AJC, Jones asked both McKay and Blank for permission and they both said no.

"From my perspective, the answer is no," Blank said he told Jones. But Blank told Jones to call Rich McKay, the Falcons' president and general manager, for a formal answer.

On Friday, Petrino called Blank to tell him he was thinking of returning to college coaching. That same day, McKay talked to Jones. "I told him I was not inclined to grant permission," McKay said.

http://www.ajc.com/sports/content/sp...deal_1213.html

[KWhit]

Originally Posted by Tekneek

According to the AJC, Jones asked both McKay and Blank for permission and they both said no.

"From my perspective, the answer is no," Blank said he told Jones. But Blank told Jones to call Rich McKay, the Falcons' president and general manager, for a formal answer.

On Friday, Petrino called Blank to tell him he was thinking of returning to college coaching. That same day, McKay talked to Jones. "I told him I was not inclined to grant permission," McKay said.

http://www.ajc.com/sports/content/sp...deal_1213.html

Right, which is even worse. He asked, was told no, and then Petrino and Arkansas met anyway. Nice.

[Tekneek]

More shady stuff has come out...

Petrino's new boss, Arkansas AD Jeff Long, defended his new coach in a story published in the Dayton Daily News. "Here's what I want you to know," Long is quoted at saying. "I'm an ethical person. I want to do things the right way. Had I wanted to talk to him [Petrino] while he was head coach of the Falcons, I would have called and asked."

Those statements contradict the sequence of events that occurred on Tuesday, when Petrino swapped jobs.

Long told both The Atlanta Journal-Constitution and the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette on Wednesday that he flew to Atlanta Tuesday afternoon and met with Petrino and Campbell in downtown Atlanta. The meeting, Long said, began at 2 p.m. Long and Petrino agreed on a basic outline of a deal and Petrino left.

Petrino returned to Falcons headquarters in Flowery Branch and walked into the office of Rich McKay, the team's president and general manager, to resign sometime after 5 p.m. Blank said he received a call from Petrino after Petrino spoke to McKay.

"When he called me for the 30-second conversation after he resigned, I said to him. 'I assume you're going to Arkansas,' " Blank told the AJC. "He said he didn't know what he was going to do. I swear to God. He never admitted then that he was going to Arkansas."

So Arkansas AD claims that Petrino was already out when he offered him the job, but the evidence says otherwise. It seems to me that getting involved with Bobby Petrino is anything but an exercise in good ethics and values.

[Synovia]

"So Arkansas AD claims that Petrino was already out when he offered him the job, but the evidence says otherwise. It seems to me that getting involved with Bobby Petrino is anything but an exercise in good ethics and values."

Why are ethics even involved. His contract said he could opt out.

[MJ4H]

Originally Posted by Tekneek

So Arkansas AD claims that Petrino was already out when he offered him the job, but the evidence says otherwise.

What evidence? One side claims one thing, the other something else.

[Hammer755]

Originally Posted by MattJones4Heisman

What evidence? One side claims one thing, the other something else.

It doesn't sound like the times of the meetings were in question, but the timing of the resignation.

Long's meeting with Petrino was at 2, and Blank's was at 5. It sounds like Petrino told Long he had already quit when it wasn't the case yet.

[BrianD]

Originally Posted by Hammer755

It doesn't sound like the times of the meetings were in question, but the timing of the resignation.

Long's meeting with Petrino was at 2, and Blank's was at 5. It sounds like Petrino told Long he had already quit when it wasn't the case yet.

Maybe Petrino had resigned via a letter to Blank before 2, but Blank just hasn't found the letter yet.

[Shkspr]

Originally Posted by BrianD

Maybe Petrino had resigned via a letter to Blank before 2, but Blank just hasn't found the letter yet.

Michael Vick's dog ate it?

[MJ4H]

It is difficult to tell, but it's all a technicality anyway. Even though they never talked before that day, everyone knows they "talked" before that day (through intermediaries at the very least).

[Tekneek]

Originally Posted by Synovia

Why are ethics even involved. His contract said he could opt out.

I didn't play the ethics card. The Arkansas AD played it.

Whether or not this is the way "everybody does it", the claim of Jeff Long that it was completely ethical would not appear to be true. Legal, or just the same as everybody else? Probably so. Just because most people do it a particular way (or that it is legal) does not mean it is ethical.

At the same time, the Falcons should never have hired the guy, so they get what they deserve. My problems with how this played out have more to do with the character and competence of the parties involved.

[SteveMax58]

Originally Posted by Tekneek

Indeed. I hope this puts an end to NFL teams hiring these "next big thing" college coaches and give preference to those coaches that actually are already involved in the pro game and know how to handle professional players.

I agree with this 100%.

I think the problem is that executive-types like Blank (not necessarily all) do not want to hear things like, "Well...I would expect to be very competitive within 3 years of establishing my persona on the team, and of course some roster changes as well. This could be anybody from our 1st string QB to the 3rd string PR." They want to hear how their current team should be winning more and shouldnt need any major changes to win now.

So...when a veteran NFL coach(or coordinator) comes in to interview and states a more realistic approach they feel is needed, and lays out a more realistic set of expectations, it just doesnt sound good. Guys like Parcells are just not very common...meaning a successful & proven HC who's expertise is nearly unquestioned.

I suppose it's like that in many professions, though. But unlike most other professions, success is not just determined by profit.

[Cringer]

John Abraham (DE, Falcons) is on the Scott Ferrall show right now and it's pretty funny. He is talking about how they have a real coach this year, not like that rat last year. Called him a rat, a weasel, and just overall showed great love for the guy.

Gone but not forgotten I guess.