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12-12-2007, 03:01 AM
Bobby Petrino resigned as Atlanta Falcons head coach Tuesday to take the same position with the University of Arkansas, the NFL Network's Adam Schefter is reporting.
Petrino left Louisville to become Falcons coach in January for a five-year, $24 million contract, largely because Atlanta felt he could help star quarterback Michael Vick reach his full potential.
A few months later, Vick came under investigation for a grisly dogfighting operation that eventually led him to plead guilty to federal charges. He was sentenced Monday to 23 months in prison without ever taking a snap for Petrino.
The Falcons said they would have no further comment on Petrino's decision until a Wednesday news conference with owner Arthur Blank and general manager Rich McKay.
Just two weeks ago, Petrino said he wasn't interested in any of the openings at several major college programs, and that he intended to return in 2008 for his second year as coach of the Falcons.
"I haven't given it one bit of thought," Petrino said on 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 and focused on playing the Rams this week."
Petrino assembled one of college football's highest-scoring offenses at Louisville, but the Falcons were anemic without Vick. They also were plagued by injuries on the offensive line, which forced them to start two players who weren't even drafted out of college.
Just hours after Vick's sentencing in Richmond, Va., Atlanta took its fourth straight double-digit loss, 34-14 to the New Orleans Saints.
"Not a good day," Petrino said afterward.
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 Alge Crumpler and DeAngelo Hall.
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 clearly 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.
Associated Press
What a chump he couldn't even finish out the season.
Petrino left Louisville to become Falcons coach in January for a five-year, $24 million contract, largely because Atlanta felt he could help star quarterback Michael Vick reach his full potential.
A few months later, Vick came under investigation for a grisly dogfighting operation that eventually led him to plead guilty to federal charges. He was sentenced Monday to 23 months in prison without ever taking a snap for Petrino.
The Falcons said they would have no further comment on Petrino's decision until a Wednesday news conference with owner Arthur Blank and general manager Rich McKay.
Just two weeks ago, Petrino said he wasn't interested in any of the openings at several major college programs, and that he intended to return in 2008 for his second year as coach of the Falcons.
"I haven't given it one bit of thought," Petrino said on 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 and focused on playing the Rams this week."
Petrino assembled one of college football's highest-scoring offenses at Louisville, but the Falcons were anemic without Vick. They also were plagued by injuries on the offensive line, which forced them to start two players who weren't even drafted out of college.
Just hours after Vick's sentencing in Richmond, Va., Atlanta took its fourth straight double-digit loss, 34-14 to the New Orleans Saints.
"Not a good day," Petrino said afterward.
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 Alge Crumpler and DeAngelo Hall.
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 clearly 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.
Associated Press
What a chump he couldn't even finish out the season.