UA’s Petrino Curses LSU’s Miles For Doing Unto Him What He’s Done Unto Others

November 28th, 2011 01:36 PM║ Posted By: John Pennington ║ Permalink ║ Schools: Arkansas, LSU
Tags: CBS, Jordan Jefferson, Ole Miss, TD

With five minutes remaining in 41-17 beatdown on Saturday, Arkansas’ Bobby Petrino didn’t take too kindly to Les Miles sticking the final three points on the board with a 37-yard field goal attempt. The fact that the Tigers led 38-17 and had starter Jordan Jefferson pass on five of seven plays to get into field goal range likely played some role in his disgust as well.

Petrino’s message to Miles from across the field was caught by CBS cameras and, well, if you can read lips it’s not hard to figure out what he had to say:

After the game, Miles tried to speak with Petrino, but the Razorback coach wanted no part of that conversation:

Now one could easily defend Miles for trying to put more points on the board. His squad is playing for a slot in the BCS title game and style points might count to the human voters.

But Miles needs no defending. A week earlier he took his foot off the gas and had his team kneel four times at the Ole Miss five-yard-line with five minutes to play. He was ripped for that move, as well, so perhaps this time he decided to err on the side of running it up.

Or perhaps Miles fears Arkansas a bit more than Ole Miss when it comes to the recruiting trail. The Hogs have reached the 10-win plateau two years in a row at this point. Perhaps LSU’s coach wanted to show recruits the difference between his squad and Petrino’s.

Whatever Miles’ motivation, Petrino was in the wrong. Mainly because Petrino hasn’t exactly been Bobby the Lenient this year, either:

51-7 over Missouri State — five of last 13 plays were passes

52-3 over New Mexico — scored last TD up 45-3 with 4:28 to play

38-14 over Auburn — scored last TD up 31-14 with 5:50 to play on pass from starting QB

44-28 over South Carolina — scored last TD up 37-28 with 4:07 to play

49-7 over Tennessee — scored last TD up 42-7 with 6:37 to play

44-17 over Mississippi State — scored last TD up 37-10 with 3:20 to play

Petrino has done a fantastic job in Fayetteville and he’s turned the Razorbacks into a national power. But he’s no longer at Louisville. Sure, he can still win big with his potent offense, but he’ll need to field a top-flight defense if he ever wants to win an SEC championship. Until he gets himself one of those, it’s likely he’ll continue to find himself in situations like the one that so riled him up on Saturday.

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97 comments

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mike

Danielson says "you never know for sure" that he was pointing at Miles. I don't think he was pointing at Miles.

mike

Looks to me like Petrino is pointing towards the end zone. You can see the folks next to him looking to midfield.

Rzrbackguy

First of all...there's nothing but speculation that he was pointing at Less...other than Danielson deciding he was. Doesn't exactly appear to be a finger jab to me. I've seen Petrino pissed off and that ain't it. So now making up stuff and deciding it happened is 'reporting'?

Get a life dude.

Bulldog

Say what you want to say about class, Petrino showed his with his mouth Friday. Debate all the other margin of victories, but Petrino removed all doubt about his makeup with his actions.

laphog

John - being an around winning "journalist" - should have talked about the end of last year's game between the two, the continued blitzing by Arkansas, the death of the player and Petrino's comments. But he went for the easy punch. He clearly has never been to Arkansas message boards. No criticism? Right.

omahahog

John: "44-28 over South Carolina — scored last TD up 37-28 with 4:07 to play" Really? Be a little more objective. That is not running up the score. Fan the flames why don't you.

Rob

You know what I think is wrong? I think it's wrong when people assume they can accurately read lips, and minds, and then use that information to slander someone. If you're gonna make accusations, shouldn't you have better proof?

As John pointed out, Petrino hasn't exactly taken his foot off the pedal against other opponents. If he was angry at Miles for running up the score, he shouldn't have been. That doesn't mean he said what everyone claims that he said, although I have little doubt that he's used those words before. Also, if you're against running up the score, then it's always wrong or you're a hypocrite. It doesn't matter that LSU was playing for style points.

As for the handshake, Petrino always does that. Even if Petrino was mad at Miles, I doubt that had anything to do with the handshake. Win or lose, it's not at all unusual for Petrino to shake the other coaches hand as quickly as possible. Many have tried to read something into that before, but in the time he's been at Arkansas, I can't remember a single time when he didn't leave the field that way.

Rob

John, I really hope you read my last paragraph and check how Petrino has left the field in other games. Maybe Petrino's exit is a little rude, but it's always rude and not just in this one game, because he always leaves the field that way. The media loves controversy, so it's no surprise when they create something out of nothing, as we've seen them do all too often.

tradeassociation

This is idiotic. Look: LSU is playing for a national title with a QB that spent most of the season either suspended or coming off the bench to run the option. A QB who threw three 3 TD passes in the regular season last year. A QB who only attempted 7 passes against Ole Miss and looked very sketchy against his first start of the year the prior game against Western Kentucky (8 completions, 2 sacks, put the ball on the ground a couple of times). If they are going to beat Georgia (who has a defense) and win the rematch against Alabama, THEY ARE GOING TO HAVE TO THROW THE BALL. Throwing the ball to set up a last second field goal? Gee ... sounds JUST LIKE what Jefferson might have to do in the SECCG or the BCSNCG!

Petrino knows this. And Petrino would do the same thing if he needed "live practice time" for his QB or kicker. You don't even need to bring up Petrino's own history of running up the score (which he has done at Arkansas, and at Louisville before then) because this was not a normal situation. If Miles has Tyler Wilson or Aaron Murray at QB, they take a knee. Or put the backup in. Or something. If Les Miles was playing for the Cotton Bowl, he takes a knee. But when you understand that Jefferson needs as much improvement throwing the football as he can get, and in a very short amount of time (UGA in Atlanta NEXT WEEK) it would have been malpractice for Miles NOT to practice their "put us in position to get a field goal before halftime/at the end of the game JJ!" drill. And again, PETRINO KNOWS THIS!

Lupin

LOL Anybody else would just be called a fiery head coach.

I strongly doubt that the hat's feelings were that hurt.

Fayettechill14

Well, regardless, it's not going to be pretty when LSU has to come to Little Rock next season. I'm going to go ahead and warn my LSU friends to stay away, or not wear purple and yellow.

GeoffDawg

And you implied that he left the Falcons because of thuggish behavior? Which is it? Logic may not be your strong suit but you can't have it both ways.

Fayettechill14

What?

GeoffDawg

Ok, since you obviously need coffee, I’ll explain it for you: You replied to a post supporting the supposition that Petrino left the Falcons because of thug players. Now, you’re implying that LSU fans need fear for their safety next season in Arkansas because your panties are in a wad. Therefore, it’s intellectually dishonest to state that Petrino is justified in treating the Falcons the way he did because of thugs and that Hog fans are justified in acting like thugs in support of Petrino’s tantrum. Do you see the conflict now? If not, I can write slower.

tradeassociation

Ummm, seeing as to how LSU will have practically everybody back next year BUT Jordan Jefferson and Jarrett Lee, it may not be pretty next year, but for totally different reasons than you are thinking of. Look, the Gary Crowton days are over. Note that LSU averaged like 3 losses a year with Crowton. This year, they are undefeated with technically no offensive coordinator at all. Finally getting that albatross off their backs makes a huge difference, whether it is in Baton Rouge, Fayetteville, Tuscaloosa, Dallas ... you name it.

D-Ram

JohnMrSEC,

Just set the record straight that you don't have an agenda. Most all of the posts on your site don't-can't remember one that does. This is ridiculous. Just tell the masses why you didn't mention the death of the player as a possible factor in BP's frustration. I'm sure there is a reason. Should he have cussed Miles, no. Obviously not. Are we naive to think no one else has said such things, I guess so from the looks of this thread.

And I don't remember all the plays from the conference, but if Petrino took a knee at the 1 yrd line last year, you should have mentioned that too. Especially since it was against the same coach. If that is found to be true. A simple "update" to the story would be nice and show everyone you just go with facts.

And why do Falcons fans still hate Petrino? They should love him for getting out of there and allowing them to win games these days. That doesn't make sense to me. I would be thrilled he ran off to Arkansas. Mike Smith is a better NFL coach. I guess some can't let go of hatred or maybe I'm just too nice.

6th straight National Championship, here we come!

johnmrsec

D-Ram...

I didn't mention the player's death because I didn't think it applied. At all. I think Petrino would have been ticked at having it run up on him no matter what. And I doubt that during the game he was thinking about what happened during the week. Most coaches get a pretty good case of tunnel vision during games. I've seen coaches coach through player deaths, spouse deaths, even their own children's deaths without yelling "F-you" to another coach.

So to me, that's not part of the story.

We simply mentioned that this happened -- can you remember the last time a coach cursed another coach with those words and was caught on tape doing it? We didn't call for discipline or anything else. Not that big of a deal. But big enough to mention... and certainly it was fair enough to mention that Petrino's run up the score a time or two, as well.

Bottom line: When I write anything that could be viewed as critical of a school, I can tell you before I post it which 4 or 5 fans of that school will be the first to claim that this site hates their school, that this site skews the news, and that "the whole story wasn't told." It's like clockwork... four or five folks at all 12 schools.

The vast majority of our readers recognize that we're as objective a site as you'll find. And the vast, vast majority don't type in our comment boxes to begin with.

Thanks for reading the site,
John

Wendell Riley

Running this story in the way you ran it showed no class for mr sec. I have always respected you and your opinions, but this has left a bad taste in my mouth. By the way I am a Vol fan and I appreciated the way he held the score down against us. Yep, just down the road from you John, Maryville.

Jamie Thornton

You didn't think it meant anything that a player( someone he recruited and was only 19) he takes under his wings dies and it doesn't apply? Really? Wow. That's really stupid or a lack of class on your part. I can go on and show you videos of how your bogus points of him running up the score. 4th string tailback against Tennessee. Running it up the middle when SHaw fumbled on his own one v.s south carolina. So on and so on. And guess what John. DId you notice in all those games that his team had won he never kicked a FG? Imagine that. What about last year with a trip to a BCS bowl on the line. 2 minutes left and arkansas recovers the ball on the one of LSU. Where was the Touchdown or FG? He took a knee. OMG, if you can't see the flaws of your own story here, maybe this should just go into the Bleacher Report files.

omahahog

Guessing its ok to disagree. yes, its your opinion the death issue didn't apply, but itts mine that it did, very much. The stress of the death was obvious to anyone who watched the various media conferences leading up. I understand you get crap from everyone no matter what you write. I respect that. I also respect a guy who says he was wrong, or may not have mentioned something he should have. I"m certainly not one of the posters you refer to because I rarely post and think most posters are children in adult clothing.

D-Ram

Did you research if Petrino took a knee in last year's game? I have no idea where to even start researching that. People just say stuff so I don't know if it's true or not. That is relevant to the story but you didn't comment on it above so please look into it to find out truth or not.Thanks.

I read everyday . Rarely post.

mith242

I've got to admit I didn't think the article was bad or anything. I don't think there was that big of a deal till everyone started posting on the article. Maybe some of us Razorback fans are a bit too defensive. (I'll refrain from any Willie Robinson jokes here) Over all I think this site remains pretty unbiased. Maybe I can sometimes see a little. But compared to most other sites I've seen it's very slight. I think a lot of it stems more from the fact that there's been some odd situations that Razorbacks have been in this season. Just because it's brought up on this site doesn't mean you hate a particular school or their fans and so on. Perhaps part of the problem is many fans do get news and info from rather biased websites that tend to be very slanted to the team they root for. So even if they do come across news at another site, like this one, that doesn't blatantly slant news toward their particular school. They feel it is some sort of slight against them. A lot of sites out there look at things from a rather skewed standpoint. But hey everybody is entitled to their own opinion.

FYI

BOBBY IS A SORE LOSER LOL!!!!!

FalconGirl

Couldn't happen to a nicer guy . . .

mith242

I don't really see the big deal here. I admit this circumstance is a bit difference because although you do see and hear coaches cursing a lot it usually isn't directed at the opposing coach. But I still don't see the big deal. I'm not saying what Petrino did is right. But come on, a fine or suspension, seriously? For the record I don't have a huge problem with teams running up scores. If you don't want the other team to score then you need to stop them. But turnabout is fair play. Miles should take it if someone runs the score up on him as well. But it's also hard for me to have much sympathy for Miles after his press conference a few years back when he kept saying Ar-kansas. Looking back on it now, it seems about the same time Arkansas started winning the series a lot more. Maybe Miles just needs to learn sometimes it's better not to stir up a hornet's nest.

Vol Guest

Arkansas fans - quit trying to parse through every Arkansas win and argue why each one was ok for Arkansas to run up the score but it's not ok for Miles to kick one more field goal. You sound ridiculous.

Vol Guest

Well, first of all, I do give due respect to the player who died (and his family) and am very sorry to hear that. Something like that always puts football in perspective.

If Petrino comes out and apologizes and tells everybody that he let his emotions get to him because of all that has happened this week, then he does get a pass (and he would even raise a few notches in my book). I don't see that he has done that, though, and as the numerous comments on this board show, Petrino's less-than-stellar reputation (whether it's perception or reality) makes it hard for people to give him the benefit of the doubt.

Out of curiosity, how much time was left when Petrino called for the knee against LSU last year? I didn't see that game.

Fayettechill14

Just under a minute. Jefferson was strip-sacked while LSU was trying to throw a Hail Mary and Arkansas recovered at the 1. There were 42 seconds left I believe. With a Sugar Bowl bid on the line, Petrino could have punched it in and probably will from now on if given the chance.

Vol Guest

Well, I do see a difference there. With less than a minute to go, you can ensure your win by just holding on to the ball. Sounds like there was at least 5 minutes in the game this past Saturday, and even more than that when that drive started. Consider it a compliment to Arkansas' offense, but I would not be comfortable sitting on the ball with almost a half-quarter left and only being up 3 TD's, and especially just taking a knee and handing you all the ball on the 20-yard line. One quick strike (which Arkansas is plenty capable of doing) plus a successful onside kick and suddenly you all are within striking distance of making it a one-possession game. Crazier things have happened.

But this conversation digresses.

Fayettechill14

None of us have a problem with Miles kicking a field goal. He was perfectly fine in doing so. Every one of us are frustrated that John wrote an article criticizing Petrino and failed to bring up that a) he had lost a player early that week and was under intense emotional stress, and b) Petrino called for a knee at the LSU 1 last season and Miles replied by throwing a bomb on him this season. That was Petrino's motivation. Just mention that and the response is not near as harsh...

johnmrsec

Fayettechill14...

I didn't write that because I don't think it applies. Didn't even occur to me to say, "Wow, Petrino said F-off to another coach on national TV, but you know what? I think deep down he might really be more upset about the death of a player than what just happened in the ballgame." Nope. I didn't and don't think it applies.

If that's not including the "full story," I also didn't point out the temperature at kickoff, the direction the wind was blowing or where Miles and Petrino got their degrees. People could come back and say I left out a lot of things. I wrote what was appropriate.

John

Fayettechill14

Except for that whole $18 million buyout thing.

Mike

Petrino will not be at arkansas long enough to field a top drawer sec championship defense. Someone else will come along.....like the Temptations song.....Bobby was a rolling stone...dad gummit. ;)

Falcons#1 Fan

Arkrazor22,

You are right. I didn't like Petrino leaving, but our players are thugs that don't show respect. Sorry to hear about the death of the Razorback player. If I were Miles, I wouldnt have been shooting for the endzone.

James

Micheal Vick was the number 1 thug on the Falcon team. Someone at ESPN called him a "coach killer." Now they are saying Andy Reid may get fired after 2 years of Vick. Im a huge Falcon fan and I didnt blame Petrino for leaving.

Arkrazor22

And another thing, Miles was running up the score on a team that just had a player die over the last week. Miles is classless.

Nawlins

This a dumb statement; everyone feels bad that a kid died. It has nor had anything to do with the end result of a football game.

Arkrazor22

Last year, Arkansas sacked Jordan Jefferson at the end of the ball game to get the ball on their one yard line. We took the knee and decided to not run up the score. If you say "Well, there wasnt a national championship on the line last year." Remember before they played, there was talk about how LSU would still get the nod, even if Arkansas beat them, to go to the Sugar Bowl, if the Sugar Bowl committee wanted them. Those are the same circumstances because Arkansas was potentially facing getting left out of the Sugar Bowl. And another thing, I would have left the Falcons too if I were Petrino. They are full of uncontrollable thugs that are paid more than the head coach and showed Petrino no respect ever since he got there. I feel sorry for the fans of the Falcons, but the players didn't deserve Coach Petrino.

GeoffDawg

Besides, even if that were true, then it would be his job to change the culture of the team. That's what he signed up for. You don't get paid millions to quit because it's hard.

Fayettechill14

That's not the job of an NFL coach. That's why so many college "rah-rah" coaches fail in the NFL. The best way to change the culture of an NFL team is win. There are other ways in college, and even more in high school.

GeoffDawg

Thank God you're not an NFL GM. That's not part of the coach's job? To set the temperment of his team? Are you new to this game?

GeoffDawg

Full of uncontrollable thugs? You do realize that just because you're in city of more than 50 people, you're not going to get mugged just stepping out the door?

Jamie Thornton

Funny. I remember in last years 31-23 Arkansas win over LSU that the Hogs had the ball at the one yard line with a few minutes to play. But Petrino took a knee. I don't see that mentioned above. Or how in the Tennessee game the Razorbacks 4th string RB scored the last TD on the ground. I also didn't see anything about Arkansas kicking any FG in the last few minutes of a game. Saban would never do that. But Les Miles does. On top of that, his players scoring a TD late and showing a sign of your heart being ripped out, as the kid from Arkansas died of a heart condition. No mention in your article of that eiter. Pure Propoganda by John again though. Because he never mentions the full side of a story.

Mike

Jefferson was doing a Clark Kent/Superman immitation. Go back and look at the video. Everyone feels badly about the untimely death of the young man. Tiger Nations' thoughts and prayers go to his family, friends, & AU.

Fayettechill14

I don't know that the rumor about Jefferson faking a heart attack after his touchdown is true. I've heard that from multiple sources, but they may have been Hog fans just mad about getting beat. If it was legitimate I think it would have been addressed.

Ditto on Petrino taking a knee from LSU's 1. Not sure why John didn't at least mention that, or the intense emotional stress Petrino was under...

Jamie Thornton

Because it's typical of JOhn in his stories. He never gives the complete story. It reminds me of picking up one of those magazines at the grocery store or watching Keith Olberman or Sean Hanity. You don't ever get the complete picture.

W Wheeler

Reading Mr SEC is like reading the Trash Tabloids in the Wal Mart check out line.

Atlanta Falcons

If you want to keep more points off the board, have your defense make a stop. Petrino deserves every dagger stuck into his spineless back. Remind him how he left Atlanta.......with a photocopied, laminated letter stuck ton his players' lockers, no face-to-face announcement.

W Wheeler

Would have been fired there anyway, did what he had to do, ya'll don't know what a good coach is anyway, look at what 's been there the last 10-12 yrs.

Fayettechill14

And four years later, you still lose sleep at night over it. Just curious, do you stalk your ex-girlfriends?

Josh

Still crying about that?

Trackbacks

Arkansas | MrSEC.com says:

December 12, 2011 at 2:44 pm

[...] got to be more aware of my actions and my language.We’ll work on improving that.”As a refresher for the coach, LSU had just tacked on a field goal to go up 41-17 with five minutes to go. Petrino pointed [...]

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