Bobby Petrino the New Head Coach

Suntan Superman

WC's Resident Samoan

Louisville coach Bobby Petrino has accepted a five-year, $24 million offer from the Atlanta Falcons to become their new coach.

Louisville athletic director Tom Jurich confirmed to ESPN's Chris Mortensen that Petrino told him about 8:30 p.m. ET that he had accepted the job and that Rich McKay, the Falcons' president and general manager, had called this afternoon to tell Jurich about the offer. Louisville sports information director Kenny Klein also confirmed the hiring.

"Bobby Petrino did a great job here at Louisville," Jurich said. "I'm proud of what he accomplished. I just wish we could have kept him longer. He will do a great job for the Falcons."

ESPN.com's Pat Forde first reported the hiring earlier Sunday night. Mortensen reported earlier that the Falcons were in deep negotiations with Petrino.

The Cardinals held a previously scheduled 9 p.m. ET team meeting at which Petrino will tell his players, the source said. ESPN.com's Len Pasquarelli reported that an NFL source also confirmed the hiring.

"I'm in shock right now," Louisville kicker Arthur Carmody told ESPN's Joe Schad Sunday night. "I'm about to walk into a team meeting right now. We're coming off a great Orange Bowl win and we were all thinking national championship. I didn't think this would happen. He said he enjoyed college football. He's a great coach and we're going to miss him."

An announcement from the Falcons could come Monday.

Before the season, Petrino signed a 10-year, $25 million contract with Louisville athletic director Tom Jurich. Petrino had previously interviewed with Auburn, LSU, Notre Dame and the Oakland Raiders for other jobs, but announced in August that he would be at Louisville for the long haul.

"I can't tell you how happy I am with the commitment and the confidence that Tom Jurich has in me and the university has in me," Petrino said after signing the contract. "I also wanted to make sure that everyone understood, I know I've said it, that this is where my family wants to be. This is where I want to be. I want everyone to really believe it."

Louisville had just completed a 12-1 season climaxed by their first BCS bowl victory, over Wake Forest in the Orange Bowl. Petrino's record was 41-9 at Louisville, as he elevated the program into an annual national contender.

The leading candidate to replace Petrino figures to be Tulsa coach Steve Kragthorpe, who has taken the Golden Hurricane to three bowl games in four years after taking over one of the worst programs in the country.

The Falcons moved quickly to replace Mora, who was fired just two years after leading Atlanta to the NFC championship game. The Falcons missed the playoffs the past two years, including a 7-9 mark this season.

Petrino's previous NFL experience includes three years with the Jacksonville Jaguars, including two seasons as quarterbacks coach and offensive coordinator in 2001. He then moved back to the college ranks, taking over as Auburn's offensive coordinator in 2002 before heading to Louisville.


ESPN.com's Mark Schlabach and The Associated Press contributed to this report.

Jayman

Super Moderator

Nice to know the 10-year extension signed last year really meant something, lol....

Petrino will probably give Vick one year to show him he's the guy, or else Vick will get traded away.

The following people rock:
Guardian Devil
Duke
God
PeaceSells
A-Bomb
Simon

Invictus

There is no way Mike Vick gets traded as no one will pick up his salary.

Suntan Superman

WC's Resident Samoan

the falcons could eat some salary like baseball just not as much as most teams would like... also they could restructure his contract to make it more affordable for other teams, there are options

Freak

Is that allowed in the NFL? I'm not sure it is.

Suntan Superman

WC's Resident Samoan

yea it is you can eat the signing bonus portion and most of the preformance incentives in a deal however, considering his deal I don't know how much of his signing bonus/incentives Atlanta would be willing to take.

Freak

Well, I think that when you trade a player you eat the entirety of his signing bonus -- the team he's traded to assumes only the remainder of his contract, which I don't think is negotiable.

Dr. Giganto

Sports Moderator

Either way, Arthur Blank has a gigantic man-crush on Vick. He's not going anywhere

WackoJako

Please god tell me they plan on taking a reciever this year in the draft. Vick isn't the best but when you really can't rely on any guy to make the catch it has to fuck with your confidence.

Freak

It's not for lack of trying that the Falcons haven't found a good wide receiver.

2003: They signed Peerless Price, a Pro Bowl receiver in 2002 with Buffalo.
2004: They drafted Michael Jenkins in the 1st round, 29th overall.
2005: They drafted Roddy White in the 1st round, 27th overall.
2006: They traded for Ashley Lelie, a former first-rounder and 1000-yard guy.

Obviously, none of these guys has shown much of anything. Whether part of that blame goes to Vick or not, we saw all four drop A LOT of passes the past few years.