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Other Voices
He's not the first coach to lie to his employer or his fans - see "Saban, Nick" - but in just a few hours last week, Petrino so thoroughly trashed what's left of his reputation as an honorable man that he's now viewed as being as truthful as politicians and used-car salesmen. At least he didn't promise to cut our taxes as he slunk out of town. Why has it become so difficult for people to just tell the truth? Just hours after shaking boss Arthur Blank's hand and vowing to stay in Atlanta, he flew off into the night and was doing that "pig sooey" thing in Fayetteville. He didn't have the guts to come face to face with his boss. He called Blank on the phone. And he treated his players even worse, leaving them a photocopied form letter. Some of Petrino's supporters - and I'm amazed there are any - say, "What was he supposed to say?" I'd argue the truth would have been a good start. There's no shame in changing your mind about a job. No shame in taking a new job and realizing that it's not what you thought it would be. No shame in realizing that you'd rather coach college athletes than the overpaid prima donnas of the professional league. No shame in quitting 13 games into a 16-game season, especially when you plainly can see that it's not working out and it's not going to get better. But there's considerable shame in flat-out lying to your boss. There's considerable shame is slinking off into the night without so much as a word to your players. Falcons' players labeled Petrino a quitter, a coward and a cancer among other things. The word "liar" was used more than a few times. And who could blame them? A year ago, it was Nick Saban's turn to host the Liar's Club. Time after time, he told anyone who'd listen he was staying with the Miami Dolphins, he wasn't going to Alabama, he hadn't talked to anyone at Alabama. Then, faster than you can say "Bear" Bryant, he was setting up shop in Tuscaloosa. Yet somehow Petrino manages to make Saban look like an angel. He's signed contracts with three teams - Louisville, Atlanta and Arkansas - for a total of 21 years - all in the last 12 months. And don't forget the clandestine meeting on the tarmac at Louisville's airport when Petrino met with Auburn officials about taking over their program - even though they hadn't yet fired their coach. Petrino may not have orchestrated that meeting, but he was complicit in its duplicity. Tell me again what about this man we're supposed to trust and admire? No, there's no shame in wanting to get out of a bad situation. But it's how you extricate yourself from said bad situation that defines you as a person. Do you think the anger would have boiled over at the Falcons' complex had Petrino been honest with Blank? There was apparently no love lost between Petrino and his players even before his sudden resignation. But surely the players would have understood had Petrino been man enough to stand in front of them and make his case. "Men, I've made a decision to leave the Falcons and return to college coaching. This has been a difficult year for all of us, and I believe the best step for all involved is for me to make a change. It lets the organization find someone who can lead you to greatness. I wish you all the success in the world, and I'm grateful for the opportunity to have worked with you." Fewer than 75 words. Less than five minutes to deliver. But with far more impact than a glorified Post-It note with a stamped signature. It's certainly true that the players didn't give their all for Petrino, and they share the blame for the team's struggles this year. But they are right about one thing. Petrino is a coward, concerned only about himself. Good riddance to bad garbage, I say.
If his track record tells us anything, Arkansas fans will be saying the same thing about him in a few short years.
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