According to reports, Texas A&M finally hired offensive coordinator Jimbo Fisher on Wednesday. And many sources say that it’s none other than Bobby Petrino. Petrino coached FCS Missouri State for three years after leading NFL teams at Arkansas and Louisville. And Petrino was just recently introduced as UNLV’s new offensive coordinator.
Petrino’s time in Nevada appears to be up now that he has the opportunity to direct an SEC offensive. ESPN reports that Petrino will replace Fisher as the Aggies’ play caller in College Station in an effort to improve the team’s anaemic scoring output (22.8 ppg).
Despite beginning the year with a No. 6 ranking in the preseason AP poll, Texas A&M wound up with a 5-7 overall record and a 2-6 record in SEC play. Prior to their season-ending victory against LSU, Texas A&M had gone 13 games without scoring more than 30 points against an FBS opponent.
In the offseason, Fisher replaced Darrell Dickey, his offensive coordinator since Fisher’s hiring at A&M in 2018. In spite of the team’s lackluster performance, Fisher continued to make all of the play calling decisions. With a 10-year, $95 million contract and a 39-21 record in his five years at Texas A&M, Fisher has been a success both on and off the field.
Over the past two years, their record is 13-11 (6-10 in the SEC). It has been believed that Fisher, who has been the play-caller for quite some time, will hand over that responsibility to Petrino, who has been the subject of controversy on multiple times during his coaching tenure.
Between his two stints with Louisville, Petrino went 77–35, and he had a 34–17 record at Arkansas. He famously accepted a job with the Atlanta Falcons in January 2007 after only six months of signing a 10-year contract with Louisville. After only 13 games with the Falcons, he quit and left a resignation note in each player’s locker.
He made a hasty escape to Arkansas from Atlanta. His motorbike accident led to his dismissal as coach midway through the 2011 season. A female colleague was present at the time of the incident and helped him. Petrino originally lied and said he was alone, but it soon became clear that he was actually with a friend and was in a relationship despite being a married man.
Petrino then sat out the 2012 season before making his way to Western Kentucky. His 8-4 record at Western Kentucky earned him a second chance at coaching at Louisville. For the first four years after he returned to the Cardinals, UL posted winning records (with the help of a quarterback named Lamar Jackson), but 2018 was a down year.
After a 2-8 start, which includes a 0-7 record in ACC play, he was let go. Fisher was drawn to Petrino because of his previous success in the SEC. His Aggies finished worst in the league in scoring offence, ranking 101st in the country (22.8 points per game).
In a time when defence dominated the SEC, Petrino’s offences at Arkansas ranked second (36.5 ppg) and first (34.8 ppg) in scoring in 2010 and 2011, respectively. SEC teams had seven of the top 30 scoring defences in the country in 2011. Petrino has had the same autonomy that Fisher did when it came to play-calling.
Before taking the job in Arkansas, he coached the Atlanta Falcons for the final three games of the 2007 season. When Petrino was suddenly fired, the Falcons had a 3-10 record. This will be Petrino’s 19th coaching position overall, including promotions. Petrino takes over a Texas A&M offence that only twice last year topped 24 points against FBS opponents.
Conner Weigman, a true freshman in 2022, started the final three games at quarterback and will be back for further action this season. Even though he was only a freshman last year, leading receiver Evan Stewart is back for his second season. Several offensive linemen for the Aggies will be returning from season-ending injuries in 2022.
On Wednesday, the Texas A&M Aggies made headlines by hiring Bobby Petrino, the former head coach of the Arkansas Razorbacks. After a disappointing regular season in which the Aggies finished with a record of 5-7 and one of the worst offences in the SEC, head coach and play caller Jimbo Fisher decided to part ways with offensive coordinator Darrell Dickey.
Even though he just led Missouri State to a 5-6 record as its head coach, the Aggies decided to hire Petrino after an extensive search. Reports indicate that Petrino, rather than Fisher, will be in charge of calling plays. Over the course of his three seasons at Missouri State, Petrino went 18-15 with two playoff exits in the first round.
Petrino’s previous coaching stops include two stints with Louisville, where he went 77-35 overall and 3-5 in bowl games in nine seasons before joining the Bears. Perhaps Petrino’s most infamous coaching stint was with the Arkansas Razorbacks, where he was fired after a series of scandals.
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