Fired Arkansas Razorbacks head coach Bobby Petrino isn't going to stay unemployed for long. Teams like scoring points, and he's good at doing that.
One day after Jeff Long's press conference revealed Petrino not only hired his mistress, but paid her $20,000, it seems crazy to think of a team hiring him to do anything at all, but let's remember the NFL had to force the Colts to keep Jim Tressel out of the booth for half a season and Mike Price had little trouble finding work after being fired by Alabama for allegedly similar indiscretions. Coaches get hired.
And if Petrino's name is momentarily mud in the college ranks, there's always the possibility of a year in the NFL, where teams are allowed to retain approximately thousands of assistant coaches. There's always something to do, even for coaches who are demonstrably far better at the college game than they are at the pro level.
Unbelievably, I'm hearing there's NFL interest in Petrino as a position coach.
— mike freeman (@realfreemancbs) April 11, 2012
Petrino could be an ace quarterbacks coach or wide receivers coach, having produced All-SEC regulars at those positions despite facing some of the league's harshest recruiting disadvantages. His move to the Atlanta Falcons was once heralded as Michael Vick's one big chance to become a legit NFL quarterback, but we saw how that went. So there are obviously certain situations he'd be wise to avoid.
For more on Hogs football, visit Arkansas blog Arkansas Expats, plus SEC blog Team Speed Kills.