Is there anyone right now that has more of their fingerprints on the Arkansas football program than Bob Petrino? And no…we don’t mean the Hogs’ head coach.
We mean the head coach’s dad: Bob Petrino, Sr.
The elder Petrino coached at tiny Carroll College in Helena, Montana from 1971-1997. And by all accounts, his 163 wins in 26 seasons helped establish a winning tradition that has carried over into five NAIA national championships won in the last eight years by current coach Mike Van Diest.
Most Hog fans had never heard of Carroll College before Bobby Petrino arrived in late 2007. But with the hiring of Chris Klenakis as offensive line coach last week, Arkansas now has four coaches on staff who played for Petrino, Sr. at Carroll College.
The others are new wide receivers coach Kris Cinkovich, strength and conditioning coach Jason Veltkamp and, of course, head coach Bobby Petrino, himself. (And Cinkovich is replacing Paul Petrino, who also played for his dad.)
Now…we’re not trying to imply that Petrino, Sr. is actually running the Razorback program. There’s no question that his son is completely in charge. But imagine if four former players of Nick Saban were now on staff at Arkansas? Wouldn’t you want to know a little more about the things they learned from him?
Veltkamp, who has been the Hogs’ strength and conditoning coach for the past two seasons, played for Petrino, Sr. in the mid-90s. He cited the similarities between the father and son during an interview with Richard Davenport in 2008.
“With both of them, tempo is the name of the game,” Veltkamp said. “That’s the way old coach Petrino was, everything was about tempo, tempo, tempo and perfection and asking more of kids. It’s funny…a kid can make a great catch but be taken down by a shoe-string tackle. A lot of coaches will pat on the back and say ‘Great catch’ instead of ‘You should have broken that tackle and gone to the end zone.’ That’s what old Coach Petrino was about.”
Petrino, Sr. was a man of few words and demanded the utmost for from his players, traits that Veltkamp has picked up and adapted.
“He wasn’t into talking any talk,” said Veltkamp, who was a two-time All Conference selection in college. “He was speak softly and carry a big stick and go out and perform. There’s always more. You always have more in you than you think you do. Obviously growing up that way, Coach Petrino learned that from his dad.”
We’ve seen a visiting Bob Petrino, Sr. at practice a few times since his son arrived in Fayetteville. He usually stands and watches the action intently, well away from the coaches and players. He is a small man in stature, but we noticed that he still has the gait of a confident coach on the sidelines.
Now, with four of his former disciples coaching this team, there’s no doubt that the demand for “tempo and perfection” from players will be higher than ever before. Maybe even higher than the lofty expectations of Razorback fans for next season.
Very interesting post. I am a huge fan of Coach Bobby.
I like the philosophy, tempo and perfection, but getting four coaches from a tiny college narrows the gene pool. Most people would prefer a wider selection of coaching experiences from bigger schools. It's hard to argue with winning, however, regardless of how small the school. And Little Bobby is doin' good at Arkansas. You can't put him down while he's winning. I hope this works out. The fans at Carroll College can't be too happy that Arkansas is raiding their coaching staff.
Oops, sorry. Never mind. I guess these guys are a few leagues removed from NAIA.
Nice article. I love me some Bobby Petrino.
And, this is the SEC. Bobby may not have learned everything there is to know. We may need a defense and a running game before we are through. He'll get there or we will have fun watching him try.