Dogged determination : Purple Dog's Petrino packs punch on defense, offense
Posted on Tuesday, October 7, 2008
>His name stands out on a roster and his play on the football field is even harder to miss.
Fayetteville's Bobby Petrino III, the son of Arkansas head football coach Bobby Petrino, is stepping up and standing out on both sides of the football.
Petrino has been one of just a few bright spots for Fayetteville on an otherwise dismal season following a scalding 2-0 start. Petrino affords a down Purple Dog team their best chance of getting back up after three-straight disheartening losses. The senior strong safety/running back/receiver has given it his best effort on the gridiron regardless of the score.
Petrino's coaches are hoping his fire will help rekindle the Purple Dogs' competitive inferno this Friday against Fort Smith Northside.
"If we had 11 of him, we'd be unstoppable,"Fayetteville coach Daryl Patton said. "Not just saying this because of who he is, but he's probably in the top three kids I've ever coached. He's a solid football player, very intelligent and plays at a high rate of speed on every play regardless of whether it's the first quarter or the fourth quarter or whether we're down or up."
Petrino (5-8, 175) is under his third head coach in three years after his father left Louisville to take the head coaching position at the Atlanta Falcons before opting to return to college to take over the Arkansas Razorback program.
In his sophomore season, Petrino started at free safety for Louisville Trinity High, which won the state championship in Kentucky's largest classification. Last year Petrino started at running back and free safety for Class 2A Greater Atlanta Christian.
Petrino's squad at Trinity lost its first game before winning out and taking home the state's top prize. His team in Atlanta endured a funk much like Fayetteville is undergoing now. His prep club in Atlanta lost three straight but rebounded and prevailed, reaching the third round of the state playoffs.
Petrino said he learned from his experiences and hopes to take those lessons learned and apply those to the Purple Dogs' current plight.
"I've been in this position before so I know how it feels,"Petrino said. "I think we can get this turned around and my goal is to win out and make the playoffs then go from there. I think we can do it. There's no reason why we can't."
Currently Fayetteville is 2-3 overall and 0-2 in 7A-West play, the exact same overall and conference marks as his dad's Razorbacks.
"When your dad's who he is, you want to prove yourself and show people you're a good football player,"Petrino said. "The coaching staff here at Fayetteville has been great to me and have given me a chance to prove myself."
Petrino, who runs the fastest 40-yard dash on the team, has used the opportunity to showcase his gift wisely. His most notable moment on defense transpired in possibly Fayetteville's biggest regular-season win in the Patton era. Petrino's interception in the end zone with eight ticks left on the fourth-quarter clock preserved a 42-37 win at Missouri power Jefferson City in Week 2.
"He's a quiet kid but he's a leader,"Patton said. "He's not real big but he packs a solid punch on defense. He's very intense and he's always thinking about the next play. You can see it in his eyes; he's always trying to be one step ahead of what the offense is doing. You can tell he's had some good coaching in the past."
When you're dad is a former NFL head coach and current NCAA Division I head coach, that's a smidgen understated.
>"A lot of how I play and how hard I play comes from my dad,"Petrino said. "He's a hard-nosed guy and he's always talking to me about knocking the crap out of people and playing tough."
>Petrino said his mother Becky Petrino generates gamefilm on his performance and he sits down with his father on Thursday nights to constructively critique his performance.
"Thursdays are my dad's nights off and he sits down with me and gives me advice,"Petrino said. "He used to be real hard on me but I think he's gotten a little softer on me."
A hardened high school gridiron veteran, though, Petrino has maintained that pugnacious desire on both sides of the ball. Petrino's presence is becoming more frequent on offense and to his delight, the backfield.
"I'm very excited because last year I started both ways all the time,"Petrino said. "I'm definitely ready to spend more time at running back."
Petrino is elusive but absorbs contact well, two qualities Patton values in his backfield, which has encountered a fumbling conundrum of late. Petrino is averaging 6.8 yards per tote.
"Offensively, he's got great feet and great vision,"Patton said. "It might have been the first time he carried the ball: There was nothing there but he sidesteps one guy, goes back left, sidesteps another guy and gets seven yards on a play that should've been no gain. He's got quick feet, great balance."
Petrino has also lined up at wide receiver. He hauled in a 36-yard touchdown pass from Brandon Allen in last Friday's loss at Springdale High. So far Petrino has snared 9 catches for 127 yards and Patton said he expects Petrino's contributions on offense to increase."He's too good to leave off the field,"Patton said. "He's just that good and he's got to be involved. He gives you that home run type player. He's got speed to get separation and is one of the best receivers on the team. If we're going to get this season turned around, he's a kid who's going to have to play well on both sides."
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