The 'Close to Vest' for Texas A&M Thinks Bobby Will Run Offense ... Week 1

Story says ex-Hogs coach Bobby Petrino will be in charge of offense for a while anyway

Author:
Andy Hodges
Updated:
Aug 7, 2023 2:09 AM EDT
Original:
Aug 6, 2023

In this story:

FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. — Like it or not, Arkansas fans had a lot invested in Bobby Petrino running when he ran the entire Razorback football program. Now that he's offensive coordinator at Texas A&M for Jimbo Fisher, they can't help but take a peek down south to how things are going. Like everyone else across the SEC, they all want to know whether Petrino will be allowed to call plays, and if so, for how long.

"Those close to the vest know he'll be given complete control of the offense Week 1," our friend Cole Thompson wrote Sunday for AllAggies.com. What was more interesting was noting he would probably be in the press box on game days, which takes away the fun for Razorback fans. They are waiting on one of his sideline meltdowns that he almost turned into an art form.

He has been up there before as an offensive coordinator. When he was at Louisville calling plays for John L. Smith (there's another name Hog fans love to talk about) he moved down on the sidelines because he was anticipating getting a head coaching job and wanted that experience.

Despite what a lot of people assume is automatic, Petrino at 62 years of age probably isn't that interested in being head coach again anywhere. Being a coordinator allows him to do what he really loves – watching film and drawing up game films that can blow up scoreboards at times.

Coaching quarterbacks is another thing he's always enjoyed and gets to do at A&M. He's probably set financially for the rest of his life, plus he doesn't have to deal with the media or all of the public relations demands that never have really seemed to interest Petrino an awful lot.

It's a problem the Hogs will have to deal with at the end of September after going on the road to play LSU. Maybe the best part of the whole game is there will be only one more year they have to go to Arlington for that annual distraction that gives up a home game for something where coaches can't have any sort of contact with recruits. The whole idea for the game from the Hogs' view was about recruiting.

But probably for this year they'll have to put up with going against a Petrino offense. He threw a scare into the Hogs in Fayetteville last year with his Missouri State team in his first trip to Fayetteville for a game since 2011. That's assuming he and Fisher doesn't blow up in the first month.