The following lays out 3 boxes a Petrino hire would check off for Hunter Yurachek. It’s primarily based on what the AD has publicly said he is looking for in the next coach of Arkansas football.
He Wants to be Here
1) Mike Irwin has reported extensively that when Hunter Yurachek hired Eric Musselman to be the coach of Men’s Basketball at Arkansas, one of the biggest factors in his decision-making was ‘how bad the candidate wanted to be at Arkansas’.
Irwin recalling the near-Gus Malzahn hire of 2017:
“I know a few people that know him and I’m what told is if he came to Arkansas, it’s his third choice maybe,” Irwin said. “Hunter Yurachek doesn’t work that way. He wants somebody that specifically wants to be here. That’s why he hired Eric Musselman [in the spring.] He told me to my face that there were some qualified candidates for that basketball job. I asked him about Chris Beard because that was the hot topic. Yurachek said ‘Even if he won the national championship, if he would come here, why would I want him? Because I wouldn’t want somebody that would leave the school that they got that far with. I want somebody that wants to be here.’”
Bobby Petrino wants to be here. He still has Arkansas in his blood. It never left. And it’s not just the well-documented Little Rock Touchdown appearance earlier this year, where he apologized and waxed poetic on his time at Arkansas. Speaking to the fans, Petrino said, “You (the fans) are what makes the University of Arkansas a special job.” But it is also apparent in the way Petrino continued to be invested in the Razorbacks immediately in the aftermath of his termination in 2012.
“He apologized,” running back Knile Davis said. “He said, ‘I’m sorry for everything that happened.’ … He was very humble. He was very hurt. I told him not to be so hard on himself. I told him, ‘You made a mistake. You’ll get back from it.’
Petrino also kept in regular contact with the staff throughout that 2012 season, including Coach John L. Smith. Tyler Wilson received multiple phone calls from Petrino. It is clearly evident he was remorseful. (In-state quarterback Tyler Wilson was recruited by Bobby Petrino, while Houston Nutt before him did not make Tyler Wilson any offers. Wilson still holds the record at Arkansas for most passing yards) Bottom line is— Petrino really loves Arkansas and wants to be here.
Buyout Hell Solved
2) Hunter Yurachek has been one of the most vocal athletic directors in college football when it comes to the current state of buyouts in college athletics. He does. not. like them. And feels they have soared out of control.
"The buyout situation throughout college athletics I don't think is great," Yurachek said. "There's huge buyouts in all these contracts. And I did say I thought that — and I said it in my opening press conference — losing football games should be condition for terms of your employment to be nullified."
Arkansas currently has a massive buyout with the now fired Chad Morris, and is in litigation with Bret Bielema over his own massive buyout.
Consider the meltdown of Louisville athletics before Petrino’s last season there (just search Amazon, there are many books on the fiasco that happened there involving the FBI, Rick Pitino, the now-fired AD of Louisville, et. al). Couple that with how things ended at Arkansas for Petrino, and many feel he would absolutely come in at a reasonable salary, with no buyouts initially— and with a ‘demonstration of ability’ period.
Arkansas has more money at its disposal than most colleges, but it is not a bottomless well. A Petrino hire minimizes the risk for another massive multi-million buyout that could further send boosters looking to spend their money elsewhere.
Petrino Adapts his Personnel to Win
3) One of the most criticized aspects of the Chad Morris-era is that he so slavishly adhered to his specific offensive vision that he had tunnel-vision when it came to playing the best players on the team. The amount of touches the best players on the team received under Morris were consistently in the lower single-digits. Juxtapose that to Bobby Petrino:
The first thing our offense is about is utilizing our weapons," says Petrino. "We have a philosophy that we call 'FTS' -- Feed the Studs. We want to get the ball to our best players and make sure we utilize the guys who can go out and make plays."
At Yurachek’s first press conference following the firing of Chad Morris, he touched on the subject.
“To me, your scheme should meet your personnel,” said Yurachek. “So if we have a coach that we hire that is scheme-A, that’s his preference, he better make sure that he can come in here with the student-athletes that we have and create a scheme that works for the talent we have on the team right now. And then as he begins to recruit the players that fit his scheme a little bit better, then implement that scheme.”
Coach Bobby Petrino recruited Lamar Jackson at Louisville, and the player is now arguably the most dynamic player playing in the NFL. Jackson wasn’t a typical fit for Petrino’s power spread offense, but Petrino made changes and adapted his offense around him. Bobby Petrino is ranked #8 in winning percentages if he is put against active college coaches. (with 10 or more years experience)
You can E-mail Hunter Yurachek at athldir@uark.edu
E-mail Chancellor Steinmetz (he will need to approve the hire) at chancell@uark.edu
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