We are all wondering how effective the offense can be next season with a new QB, new offense and new offensive coordinator Paul Petrino. I figured we deserved to have some of these questions answered so I went in house and sought the opinion of my Arkansas compatriot SBN blog Arkansas Expats to get some answers.
1) The Petrino brothers are known to be very talented offensive coaches, and the success at Louisville and Arkansas is proof of that, my question is, how much of that success is attributable to Bobby, and how much to Paul, and can Illini fans expect the same sort of success?
Outside the Petrino family, I'm not sure if anyone really knows the answer to that question. Looking at it from the outside, Bobby always seemed to be the leader/big brother side of the equation, but Paul was a very key contributor in his own right. Even if the exact details are unclear, he was definitely a legit part of Bobby's success, and I think he'll do well at Illinois (and it should be interesting to see how Bobby does without him).
2) Having Brian Brohm and
Ryan Mallett as QB tends to make any offense pretty good, but can Illini fans expect Paul Petrino to develop a less heralded QB into this system?
Yes, definitely. In the Petrinos' first year at Arkansas, their quarterback was the extremely unheralded
Casey Dick and they molded him into a competent SEC passer who even tossed a few 300+ yard games (trust me, this was unheard of before the Petrinos arrived). Expect solid QB play next year, no matter who's manning the position.
3) We have heard that this style of offense features a lot of passing, the Illini have a strong running back heading into next season, do you think he will be underused, or will the offense adapt?
Both Bobby and Paul Petrino are fond of saying that their offensive philosophy is "feed the studs". They also talk quite a bit about having a balanced attack (even if it is somewhat of a "pass to set up the run" approach). Going back to the Petrinos' first year at Arkansas again, their best player on offense was RB Michael Smith and he was the second leading rusher in the SEC that year...he even had a couple of 30+ carry games.
Based on all that, if your RB is the strength of the offense I'd expect him to be very much in the mix.
4) Having coached under his brother his whole career, I don't believe Paul Petrino has ever called an actual play on offense, do you see this as a problem.
Well, it is a little unusual for a major college to hire an offensive coordinator who has never called the plays. But, if anyone with that background is capable of succeeding, I'd think Paul Petrino would be that guy. Even if he wasn't calling the plays in previous stints as OC, all indications are that he was always a key part of the offensive coaching and game-planning, so my guess is that he'll do just fine in that area.
5) Do you think this was a good hire? Tell me what you think of the younger Petrino as a coach.
I definitely think it was a good hire for you guys. Both Bobby and Paul Petrino are known for attention to detail, innovative offensive attacks and knowing exactly how they want their system to run. Look for Paul to whip the Illini offense into shape pretty quickly.
As discussed above, it's hard to pinpoint the true strengths and weaknesses of Paul Petrino as a coach because he's always been overshadowed by his brother, but of course that's why he went to Illinois in the first place. At first I thought it was a strange move for him - making a very lateral career jump instead of becoming a head coach - but I'm sure he feels that getting out on his own is the best way to make his own name. My prediction is that he'll do well at Illinois and will wind up leading a team of his own someday.
by Joe Kutsunis on Jan 6, 2010 3:24 PM CST
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