Anonymous opposing coach intrigued by Bobby Petrino 'experiment' at Texas A&M

Jimbo Fisher and Texas A&M made one of the most intriguing coordinator hires of the offseason. After a dysfunctional season in College Station, Fisher hired Bobby Petrino to come and run the offense in College Station.

While Fisher has reportedly ceded play calling duties to Petrino, it’s a marriage that at least one opposing coach is going to be watching keenly. They detailed their interest anonymously in the Athlon Sports season preview.

“The (Bobby) Petrino experiment is absolutely a must-watch in the coaching community. We’re all dying to see how those two dudes work together. Or not. Jimbo told all the candidates for the OC job they’d actually be play-calling, so let’s see if he can hold off and not try to manage the book,” the coach said.

The Aggies ranked 93rd nationally in total offense in 2022 en route to a 5-7 season. Texas A&M churned out just 360.9 yards per game last year and scored more than 24 points just three times. They eclipsed 30 points just twice all year.

“Offensively, they were awful last year when you think about the talent they have,” the coach said.

It was also, in many ways, one of the first big cautionary tales of the NIL era. Texas A&M signed one of the best recruiting classes in history ahead of 2022 as many reported and speculated that NIL was a factor, despite Fisher’s denial.

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Rather than using NIL to entice a transfer to chose your school or to keep a player from jumping in the portal, the Aggies brought in a wealth of elite high school prospects. This opposing coach noted that it was a pronounced level of dysfunction.

“This is the roster where everyone talks about Name, Image and Likeness as a bad thing. They have culture issues, and it shows on their sideline in games,” the coach said.

The opposing coach isn’t the only person keeping an eye on Petrino and Texas A&M

On3’s J.D. PicKell said this is a prove-it-year for Petrino and Texas A&M. If he can solve the team’s biggest issues, the Aggies could be a force.

With the amount of talent on Texas A&M, Petrino could be set up for success as the team’s offensive coordinator. 

“Is it really that simple? Is it really that simple in College Station,” PicKell said. “We’ve heard so much about the talent they have. And talent is great, but talent only gets you so far. And last year the number one complaint for Texas A&M fans is what the heck are we doing on the offensive side of the football? What is going on? Because it felt like we got all this talent with our Evan Stewart, who I think is going to have a tremendous year. Why are we not scoring more points? Why aren’t we converting on third down? Why are we so far below average with all the talent we have?