Examining the absurdity of Jimbo Fisher's offensive coordinator decision
Texas A&M head coach Jimbo Fisher is creating a toxic environment for his football team.
On Wednesday, ESPN's Chris Low reported that Bobby Petrino will become Texas A&M’s next offensive coordinator just three weeks after he left to become offensive coordinator at UNLV.
As many hits as Fisher’s reputation has taken over the past couple years, it doesn’t hold a candle to the stench that has followed Petrino at several of his stops.
He was seen as an offensive genius during a stint with Louisville from 2003-2006. He fled for a disastrous 13-game tenure in the NFL with the Atlanta Falcons in 2007 where he went 3-10.
Once he bolted from Atlanta, he landed at Arkansas from 2008-2011, home of his biggest failure. He was injured in a motorcycle crash and lied about a female staffer with whom he was having an affair being on board with him. Once his indiscretions became public knowledge, he was fired in April 2012.
Petrino reemerged for a second stint at Louisville in 2014, ending in 2018 when he was fired in-season after posting a 2-8 record.
Petrino coached at FCS Missouri State from 2020-22. He was supposed to join first-year UNLV coach Barry Odom's staff before reneging on those plans and making a move to College Station instead.
As Bomani Jones noted on Twitter, there's a strong chance this doesn't end well.
Petrino joins a Texas A&M team that already has coaching pariah D.J. Durkin on staff. He was fired from Maryland in 2020 after 19-year-old offensive lineman Jordan McNair died from heatstroke during an offseason workout. Durkin was hired by Texas A&M last offseason.
Fisher needed someone else to call plays on offense. Texas A&M averaged 22.8 points per game in 2022, the lowest in the Fisher era. His choice to hire Petrino, a retread with as much baggage as success, shows there aren’t many more decisions the Aggies should let Fisher make.
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