FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. – There have been a lot of stories of presumed Arkansas offensive coordinator Bobby Petrino making grown men cry.
Former Razorback DJ Williams said shortly after it became clear his former head coach is the primary target for the job that he and his teammates were afraid to walk down the hallway out of fear Petrino may talk to them and they not know how to answer in a way that met his expectations. However, shortly after the sun rose Wednesday morning, Petrino had grown men crying for a much different reason.
In an absolute tear-jerker, he paid homage to former Arkansas quarterback Ryan Mallett who passed away tragically this summer. Mallett, along with fellow star quarterback Tyler Wilson helped guide the Razorbacks to Top 5 status as a football program under Petrino in the early 2010s.
If there was a concern about how Arkansas quarterback recruits might handle the news Petrino may become the next offensive coordinator, 2024 recruit KJ Jackson lad them to rest earlier this morning. The 4-star QB out of St. James School in Montgomery, Alabama left little doubt about his intentions come signing day.
Charleston Collins has reposted multiple positive Bobby Petrino tweets, indicating he's all in. However, he may have company soon. Former 4-star receiver Raymond Cottrell has been getting verbal encouragement from Razorback fans to follow Petrino to Fayetteville via the portal in a few days. Cottrell appears to have enjoyed the interaction.
Of course, part of having a successful season means maintaining players who have shown they can perform, especially if they were able to put up numbers in the anemic Dan Enos era offense. Perhaps the biggest highlight of a dark season outside tight end Luke Hasz was transfer wide receiver Andrew Armstrong. He led the team with 56 catches for 764 yards and five touchdowns.
That's why when Armstrong posted a shades on emoji with photos of him on the field in Razorback Stadium, Arkansas fans flooded him with encouragement about how good he can be next season under Petrino.
Just in case people missed it since it wasn't included on the list of players who have already announced they are coming back, one player fans won't have to recruit is defensive back Lorando "Snaxx" Johnson. He made it clear over the extended Thanksgiving weekend he will be back with the Razorbacks barring something crazy happening.
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