Jimbo Fisher Didn’t Hire Bobby Petrino for Loyalty

Former Razorbacks coach will get paid a lot to do what he loves most

Author:
Andy Hodges
Publish date:
Jan 8, 2023 9:00 AM EST

In this story:

FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. — Texas A&M coach Jimbo Fisher didn't hire Bobby Petrino last week for loyalty.

The former Arkansas coach was brought in to try and keep him the head coach.

Petrino's ego won't let it because of a lack of offense it doesn't work ... oh, and making over $1 million a year makes that even easier.

The media haters of new Aggies offensive coordinatorare going to continue along their merry way.

Nearly everybody in Arkansas has let go of what happened on April Fool's in 2012. A lot would love to have him back.

A lot of the Razorbacks' Lunatic Fringe will never let go.

Nothing changed this week. The list is too long to give everybody credit. Exactly why they worry about the past now has confused me for 52 years in this business.

The Aggies and Fisher know all of that. Petrino couldn't hide it if he wanted to and that usually blows up anyway.

Fisher has found the new world of college football has changed so much he's not having enough hours in a day to do it all and still draw up offensive game plans. Hogs coach Sam Pittman doesn't like it, either.

Petrino, who has mellowed quite a bit with grandkids and age (it happens to all of us), likely doesn't want to deal with this new world anyway.

If Fisher lets him spend most of his time sitting in an office drawing up plays and game plans, the guess is Petrino will be perfectly content while he's making over $1 million a year.

He did what nearly all of us would do when offered the opportunity to double our pay at 61 years of age. Ellis Johnson took the job as his first defensive coordinator at Arkansas and left for South Carolina three days later.

There are probably other examples in Petrino's past, but that one is from home.

In today's world, why would a coach NOT leave for a better opportunity?

Loyalty hasn't been part of the equation at any level for 40 years or so for coaches ... or the players.

It is certainly not a factor for most college football players today.

They don't have to ask permission to leave at any time.

In College Station, Fisher needs some juice in the offense that has, at times, resembled a bulldozer stuck in the mud. If you haven't see that, it does happen every once in awhile and it's not a pretty site.

The Aggies need to score more points.

Few people in college football can rackup yards or light up a scoreboard like Petrino and he's shown he can do it at just about any level.

When he brought Missouri State into Fayetteville back in September, he made life pretty uncomfortable for Razorbacks fans until into the fourth quarter. His basic concepts remain the same.

He also still knows how to get the maximum out of just about any quarterback he has. Petrino did it at Arkansas in 2008 and how that team got five wins will remain a mystery forever.

Ignore the moral whining of a lot of media who still like to dwell on things that don't matter.

It's a good bet all that matters at A&M is producing enough points to win some SEC games because Fisher knows exactly what's at stake in the 2023 season and those are high enough to deal with just about anything.

The word from insiders there is if they don't win games, there will be a housecleaning in the football offices, starting with saving a bunch on the head coach's salary.