The Western Kentucky coach is interested in returning to the school he coached from 2003 to 2006 before leaving for the NFL's Atlanta Falcons months after signing a 10-year extension.
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“He told me this weekend he would like the opportunity to coach at Louisville again,” Petrino’s father, Bob Sr., told the Courier-Journal. “He said that he’s been everywhere, the NFL and everywhere else, and he said probably the biggest mistake he’d ever made as a coach was leaving Louisville.”
Petrino does not plan to contact Louisville athletic director Tom Jurich about the opening created by the departure of Charlie Strong to Texas.
Petrino was 41-9 at Louisville, including a 12-1 record in 2006 that ended with a win in the Orange Bowl. He didn’t last a full season with the Falcons before taking the job at Arkansas.
At Arkansas, Petrino was 34-17 in four seasons and was 11-2 in 2011. In April 2012, he was fired after a motorcycle accident unraveled a series of lies, including a relationship he was having with a university employee.
After sitting out in 2012, Petrino was hired by Western Kentucky hired him and the Hilltoppers were 8-4 this season.
“I don’t think there’s any other place in the world where (Bobby) can do the things he can do in Louisville,” Bob Petrino Sr. told the Courier-Journal. “I don’t think there’s any question, if he was offered this job, he’d take it.”