FALCONS HIRE NEW HEAD COACH

[Brett]

Louisville coach Bobby Petrino has accepted a five-year, $24 million offer from the Atlanta Falcons to become their new coach, according to a Louisville source.

The Cardinals have a previously scheduled 9 p.m. ET team meeting at which Petrino will tell his players, the source said. At least one player, running back George Stripling, said at 8:45 p.m. Sunday that the players had not been apprised that Petrino was leaving.

An announcement from the Falcons could come Monday.

Before the season, Petrino signed a 10-year, $25 million contract with Louisville athletic director Tom Jurich. Petrino had previously interviewed with Auburn, LSU, Notre Dame and the Oakland Raiders for other jobs, but announced in August that he would be at Louisville for the long haul.

"I can't tell you how happy I am with the commitment and the confidence that Tom Jurich has in me and the university has in me," Petrino said after signing the contract. "I also wanted to make sure that everyone understood, I know I've said it, that this is where my family wants to be. This is where I want to be. I want everyone to really believe it."

Louisville had just completed a 12-1 season climaxed by their first BCS bowl victory, over Wake Forest in the Orange Bowl. Petrino's record was 41-9 at Louisville, as he elevated the program into an annual national contender.

The leading candidate to replace Petrino figures to be Tulsa coach Steve Kragthorpe, who has taken the Golden Hurricane to three bowl games in four years after taking over one of the worst programs in the country

[Eurostunna07]

..damn this was fast.

[NewGen33]

Haha i used to live in Tulsa and that guy is a miracle worker. He took Tulsa from being the worst college football team, to three straight bowl games.

[mp5o]

HO LEE SHIT

[BaHumBugg]

Nice nice, hopefully we can see some changes next year

[Incomplete057]

Now lets see what happens.......I'll try again....SUPER BOWL!!!!!!

[HalfBaked]

College coaches don't really perform too well in the NFL...

Nick Saban, Steve Spurrier, Pete Carroll...

The only one that really worked out was Jimmy Johnson.

[green91]

Well i hope that this guy doesnt follow suite with your other college coaches halfbaked, atlanta has the bankroll and a good amount of talent, it would be nice to see the dirty birds back on the map.

[con]

just saw this during a news break.....hope he is able to bring some joy to our city......

[1SICKLEX]

Awful move...

[VegetaRules]

College coaches don't really perform too well in the NFL...

Nick Saban, Steve Spurrier, Pete Carroll...

The only one that really worked out was Jimmy Johnson.

^^^ Agreed I think this is baaaaad move. When the hail did he even come in for an interveiw??? I mean how do you hire another college coach a week AFTER another one just failed??

This my friends is why Falcons are forever bound to mediocrity. Oh & to those who wanna scream it's Vicks fault....they weren't winning with Miller, nor aside from one fluke season Chandler. That is all.....Vegeta...Oh my choice woulda been Chow,Wisenhunt, the end.lol

[Brett]

I atleast hope he isnt a west coast style coach. I dont know anything about this guy but I hope his first move is to get rid of Knapp and Donatello also. And then hire a Offensive coach that can build a true offense around Vicks talent so we can fully utilize him.

[HyPer50]

I'm really suprised that they made this move so fast... Either they really saw something unbelievable in this guy or somethin'... Way too quick to act on this, plus it's a college coach = /.... hopefully it plays out right but ya, i'm undecided right now.

[Brett]

Here is his BIO:

Bobby Petrino Bio
January 7, 2007

Falcons appoint Bobby Petrino as new head coach


Bobby Petrino is returning to the NFL as the head coach of the Atlanta Falcons. Petrino's new appointment is effective immediately.

Petrino joins the Falcons following a very successful four-year run at the University of Louisville. During his tenure there, Petrino put the Cardinals football program on the national map as he quickly earned a reputation as one of college football's top coaches and offensive minds. During his four seasons at Louisville, his teams earned a Bowl appearance every year and had a combined record of 41-9, including an impressive 22-1 at home at Papa John's Cardinal Stadium.

In 2006, Petrino helped the Cardinals win their first ever Big East Conference Championship on the way to a 24-13 victory over Wake Forest in the FedEx Orange Bowl. The team was also recognized by having seven Cardinals earn first team All Big East honors, the most in the league.

Appointed as the head coach at Louisville in 2003, it marked Petrino's second stint at the school. He served as the offensive coordinator for the Cardinals in 1998.

Petrino rejoined Louisville after serving as the offensive coordinator at Auburn in 2002. Under Petrino, the Tigers offense significantly improved its position in the Division I-A rankings during the season. It didn't take long for him to put his stamp on the Auburn offense as the Tigers finished the season with a 9-4 mark and led the Southeastern Conference in pass efficiency and third down conversions while also ranking third in the league in scoring offense, rushing offense and total offense en route to a 13-9 victory over Penn State in the Capital One Bowl.


Prior to coaching the Tigers, Petrino was a coach in the NFL, spending two seasons (1999-2000) as the quarterbacks coach and a third (2001) as offensive coordinator with the Jacksonville Jaguars. During his tenure with the Jaguars, Petrino tutored Mark Brunell to his three best passing seasons in his illustrious career. Brunell threw for 3,640 yards in 2000, which was the second-highest total in team history, and 3,309 yards in Petrino's only term as the offensive coordinator with the Jaguars in 2001.

Petrino arrived at the University of Louisville for the first time in 1998 as offensive coordinator. In his initial stint, the Cardinals were top-ranked in Division I-A in scoring and total offense and posted the biggest positive turnaround among I-A football teams, winning six more games than in the 1997 season.

Prior to the University of Louisville, Petrino spent three years as offensive coordinator at Utah State, transforming a program which averaged a little more than 300 yards per contest into an offensive juggernaut, which established a USO record with 468.5 yards of total offense per game during the 1996 season.

Petrino spent 1994 at the University of Nevada as both the offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach. During his sole season, the Wolf Pack ranked second in the nation in both passing offense and total offense, averaging more than 330 yards passing and 500 yards of total offense per game. Nevada also averaged 37.6 points per game to finish third nationally in scoring offense.


In 1992 and 1993, Petrino was quarterbacks coach at Arizona State. During his two seasons at ASU, he oversaw the development of future All-American and current Denver Broncos QB Jake Plummer.

In 1989, Petrino served as the quarterbacks coach at the University of Idaho before being promoted to offensive coordinator for two seasons. Prior to coaching at Idaho, Petrino served as a full-time assistant in the Division I ranks as wide receivers and tight ends coach at Weber State in 1987 and 1988.

Petrino coached at his alma Mater, Carroll College, from 1985 to 1986, serving as the offensive coordinator for a team that had the top-rated offense in NAIA football in each season. In 1984, Petrino began his coaching career at Weber College, coaching quarterbacks as a graduate assistant.

A native of Helena, Montana, Petrino graduated with a bachelor's degree in math and physical education from Carroll College, where he played quarterback as a collegiate athlete and later began his coaching career as a graduate assistant during the 1983 season. A two-time NAIA All-American quarterback at Carroll, Petrino guided the Fighting Saints to three consecutive Frontier Conference Championships and was named the league's most valuable player in 1981 and 1982.

Born in 1961, Petrino is married to the former Becky Schaff and the couple has four children - Kelsey, Nick, Bobby and Katie.

[HyPer50]

Little more info on Petrino and his philosophy... makes me feel a little better about the decision, I just hope in transfers good to the pro's.

From the Winston-Salem Journal...

CHESS GAME: Coaches prepare for the unexpected

FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. - In a football war of wills, something eventually will give.

Louisville's hyperactive offense ranks second nationally in yards and third in scoring. Wake Forest's assertive defense is 10th in scoring prevention and tied for first in interceptions.

The average score of a Louisville game: 39-17. The average score of a Wake Forest game: 22-15.

Placed side by side, the numbers don't mesh. The computer trying to predict an Orange Bowl score whimpers and sputters, bound for a crash.

Dean Hood, the Wake Forest defensive coordinator, spends his days guessing which plays that the Cardinals might run in which situations. He spends his nights in relative peace, remembering all those moments his safeties swiped passes and his linebackers hammered runners. Somewhere amid the sweet dreams and sour aberrations of an 11-2 season, surely Coach Hood has a feel for how the bowl game will evolve.

"I expect the unexpected," he said yesterday. "That's why we're in this business. From a competitor's standpoint, you're in it because you don't know what to expect. The cat that bet $5 in Vegas that Wake Forest was going to the Orange Bowl, he's on a beach somewhere having a party. That's what makes it exciting. What's on paper is this, but what's on paper isn't always the way it turns out."

No. 5 Louisville and No. 15 Wake Forest reached the South Florida beaches on substance, winning conference titles. Winning the Orange Bowl probably hinges on style. The team that imposes its style usually dictates the tempo and tenor, and dictators usually prevail.

Wake Forest controlled those elements in the ACC championship game, keeping the score close and picking off a Georgia Tech pass to set up the tying field goal in a 9-6 testament to old-school values. Louisville revved up the glittery offense in its biggest win, 44-34 over West Virginia, and closed out the Big East books with two straight 48-point explosions.

Coach Bobby Petrino's philosophy seems straightforward enough: Be No. 1 in offense every year. Paul Petrino, the offensive coordinator, calls his brother a genius and calls out opponents with a hurry-up pace

"I think defensive players, a lot of times, have in their mind that if they're out there past five or six plays that they should be tired, and I've never understood that because offense is out there the same time," Paul Petrino said. "Defensive kids seem to think that, so we really try to get up-tempo, go after them, go after them and go after them so they don't have time to rest."

The Cardinals rush out of the huddle, hoping to reach the scrimmage line before an opposing captain calls the defense. Center Eric Wood considers that speed a distinct advantage. "We can put pressure on the defense and make them line up quicker," Wood said. "They can almost panic at times."

Louisville combines similar aggression on defense, using creative blitzes as vital elements in a purposeful style. Steed Lobotzke, Wake Forest's offensive coordinator, sees similarities to Georgia Tech.

"They do a nice job in coverages, being aggressive and jumping routes but also keeping the ball in front of them so they don't give up big plays," Lobotzke said. "I think their defense is overlooked a lot of the time because their offense is so flashy. They are an aggressive defense. They don't sit back. They aren't bend-but-don't-break. They want to get off the field in three plays or have you score in one. They're out there to make something happen one way or the other. They want to get their offense the football back, and they're going to be a high-pressure defense against us."

Outstanding kickers augment the contrasting styles. Wake Forest's Sam Swank kicked three field goals from beyond 50 yards against N.C. State and scored all the points against Georgia Tech, but sometimes he has greater value as a punter. The Wake Forest philosophy features an unusual maxim: Punting isn't the worst thing you can do.

Swank's 41.5-yard average hardly reveals his vast talents. The Deacons downed 17 of his punts inside the 20-yard line, and opponents returned only 13 punts in 65 chances. Because of superb coverage, Wake Forest ranks ninth in net punting yards.

Louisville's Art Carmody converted 20 of 23 field-goal attempts and all 57 extra points, winning the Lou Groza Award. Cardinals teammates call him Art-o-matic.

Wake Forest's Jim Grobe puts extreme emphasis on avoiding turnovers and maintaining good field position. He prefers running to passing. He loves causing turnovers, another reason that defensive coordinator Hood urges backs to classify nearly every pass as up for grabs and to catch balls rather than swat them away.

"I tell the guys all the time that there's a difference between taking a risk and taking a chance," Hood said. "A risk is something that's calculated, something that you've worked on in practice. A chance, that's Vegas, when you put $5 down. That's just not real smart."

On the other side of the game plan, Louisville's Bobby Petrino splits the run-pass distribution evenly but splits few hairs about his intentions: Go for the end zone, sooner rather than later, and turn up the defensive heat.

His defensive coordinator, Mike Cassity, favors a secondary with steel nerves. "It's like I tell our cornerbacks: They're going to make SportsCenter one way or the other when we isolate them out there so much on the island."

Living on the edge works for Louisville. It wouldn't necessarily work for the Deacons.

"They definitely have an entirely different team philosophy," assistant Lobotzke said. "They're going to be aggressive and risky on offense and aggressive and risky on defense, whereas we're going to be more conservative on both sides of the ball. Our offense and our defense are married together. I think their offense and defense are married together. They are both philosophies that you can use to win."

But only one team will win the Orange Bowl, for reasons now unknown.

[TeeJay]

LOL @ the falcons, at least interview some motherfuckers mr blank!! jeezus

[VegetaRules]

Well, I hope it all does work out for sure. I just hate setbacks, I mean seriously we've NEVR had back to back winning seasons!! I hope they hired him because of something they really liked, & not the fact that as a college coach he might not impose his might.

Falcons need to seriously change their philosphy on Offense & Defense & drafting. One they need to get bigger on both Lines. They need to stop passing on Georgia players( Ward, Reggie Brown, among others) They need to draft Miami players. lol

Yeah thats funny, but true. Hurricane players own most of NFL skill positions, except QB.lol They also need to start drafting for their division. They're not good enough to be finesse team, which is what they really are despite the rushing numbers.

They couldn't power run at a team of IAer's on 4rth & goal.lol....Vegeta

[Fast Shadow]

Interesting, I was thinking it may have been Bill Cowher.

[bdydrpdmazda]

Werd on the street is that Bill Cowher decided to retire, Im not possitive but thats what I heard.

[Fast Shadow]

Word on the street is that Bill Cowher decided to retire. Im not positive though.

He said he's retiring but he also said he's not tired of coaching. I think he'll be back. If not next year then the year after. With the Dolphins job having opened up was I wondering if he may have gone straight there or to Atlanta.

[thinkfast®]

DEEZ NUTS

[itsjustdee]

Haha i used to live in Tulsa and that guy is a miracle worker. He took Tulsa from being the worst college football team, to three straight bowl games.

this has nothing to do with the thread, but i used to live in tulsa too!

[Hulud]

shoulda picked a non-college coach

[thinkfast®]

lol @ justdee wowzers

I used to live off Buford Hwy the fuk that gotta do w/ the Falcons coach?

mexican FTW!

[itsjustdee]

lol @ justdee wowzers

I used to live off Buford Hwy the fuk that gotta do w/ the Falcons coach?

mexican FTW!

you know sometimes i just wanna kick you in your face!

[thinkfast®]

HOMEY DONT PLAY THAT

[PhAtBoYMr2]

damn ricky you getting served like flapjacks son

[thinkfast®]

I DONT THINK SO TIM

um, mark

[PhAtBoYMr2]

WHO THE FUCK IS TIM

[itsjustdee]

damn ricky you getting served like flapjacks son

mark i kno u ain't talking. lol

[PhAtBoYMr2]

dee you know last time we almost fought you were scared

[itsjustdee]

dee you know last time we almost fought you were scared

mark...i almost fought you and YOU GOT SCARED! lol dirty haitian!

[thinkfast®]

LOL thats cuz I ws behind you mark

[PhAtBoYMr2]

Me: Hey dee lets talk
dee: Sure mark whatsup
Me: whats all that shit your talking on IA
dee: I'm just kidding you know i love you
Me: Don't let it happen again or else! *raises back hand*
dee: I'm sorry can i make you a plate of food?
me: That's right woman get in the kitchen and cook me steak *Points to kitchen door*



It was some good steak though, shit i had seconds and i even had her make ricky a plate....Ah dee come back home

[thinkfast®]

I was behind mark and dee

there

[thinkfast®]

this just in mark is a known liar

[PhAtBoYMr2]

I KEEPS IT REAL

[thinkfast®]

^^ another lie

[thinkfast®]

give it up mark, call me mufasa and you simba

you all bark son lol

[PhAtBoYMr2]

MUFASA DIED AND SIMBA LIVED