After weeks of speculation and rumor, Paul Petrino has been named the head football coach at the University of Idaho.
Jesse Hart | Argonaut
Paul Petrino, new Vandal head football coach, greets the crowd following his press release speech Monday in the Kibbie Dome.
In a Monday press conference, Idaho Athletic Director Rob Spear announced Petrino as the university’s 33rd head coach.
Petrino, who will be at the helm of a collegiate football program for the first time, spoke in front of various media outlets, alumni and university officials.
“It’s something I’ve worked for since I was a little kid, I’ve dreamed about it, that’s all I’ve ever wanted to do is be a head coach,” Petrino said. “I can give you my word that I’ll give you every last bit of energy I have in my body to make sure that the Vandal family is back at the top.”
Most recently the offensive coordinator at the University of Arkansas, Petrino made his first stop at Idaho in 1992 when he was hired as the running backs, receivers and special teams coach.
Since then he has been the offensive coordinator at Louisville, Illinois and Arkansas. He had a brief stint as the receivers coach for the Atlanta Falcons. In last year’s NFL Draft four of Petrino’s receivers from the same school were selected in the same draft class for the first time in its history.
Known for his high-powered offenses that have featured players such as Roddy White, Tyler Wilson and Ryan Mallett, Spear hopes Petrino’s schemes will translate well at Idaho.
“We’ve just proven today with this hiring that we can hire one of the best coaches in the country, one of the most innovative offensive minds in the country,” Spear said. “He’s a gentleman who can get his teams to get his compete at the highest level.”
Petrino has yet to announce who will join him on staff, but has contacted coaches who have expressed interest and have committed to the various positions.
“I think I have some real good coaches that you’ll be excited about that already committed to coming, I’ve got a couple other unbelievable coaches that might take a little more time before I know when they’ll come or not,” he said.
Petrino wouldn’t name those coaches, but expects a number of them will come in toward the end of the week.
A native of Butte, Mont., and graduate of Carroll College where he played quarterback, Petrino plans to localize recruiting and noted that some of Idaho’s best players during his initial three-year period came from the Pacific Northwest.
“I think the first thing that you’ve got to do is be great at home … We’ve got to go out and recruit our tail off and get the best kids in Idaho to stay here. We’ve got to make Spokane home,” he said.
From a tactical standpoint, Petrino was anxious to talk “Xs and Os” and the high-powered scheme that has helped him make his name as an offensive mastermind.
Despite going 4-8 this past season, Arkansas still managed to score 23.5 points-per-game in a Southeastern Conference that is defensively stout across the board.
According to Petrino, Idaho’s new offense will be built around its quarterback’s strengths, whether that is pocket passing or ability to run the option.
“What we really talk about is what we say is FTS, and that stands for ‘feed the studs’. So we want to find the biggest studs we’ve got and get the ball in their hands,” Petrino said.
One of those studs, for Idaho, will be on the defensive side of things when Petrino coaches his first game next fall.
Sophomore Maxx Forde is fresh off of being named an all-WAC honorable mention defensive end and will likely be a key component to a Vandal defensive line that Petrino hopes will make sacking opposing quarterbacks a theme.
“I like hitting the quarterback,” Forde said. “I need to get there a little more than I did this year, but I want to work on that … I like that.”
Special teams-wise, Idaho’s new coach said he won’t hesitate to utilize his best offensive and defensive players on special teams.
The Idaho State Board of Education will approve Petrino’s base salary, which has been set at $390,000.
Petrino was one of 15 candidates that Spear contacted for the vacant position. He replaces interim coach Jason Gesser, who replaced Robb Akey following Idaho’s seventh loss of the season.
The Vandals were 29-9 during Petrino’s three-year tenure with Idaho and under head coach John L. Smith, the team won the Big Sky Conference.
Theo Lawson can be reached at [email protected]