Petrino Says He Has No Interest In Auburn Job

FAYETTEVILLE — Auburn may be looking for a new football coach, but Bobby Petrino and his attorney, Russ Campbell, said it won’t be him.

Both said the Arkansas coach had no interest in replacing Tommy Tuberville, who resigned Wednesday.

“The people at Arkansas can rest easy that their coach is going to be there and he’s out recruiting for them,” Campbell told The Morning News. “He’s excited about the future. We can put this one to rest pretty quickly.”

Petrino’s name emerged when The Birmingham News reported that an unofficial Auburn representative reached out to those close to Petrino and Texas Tech coach Mike Leach to gauge interest. The story cited a source who also said the window for hiring Petrino had likely passed after he left the Atlanta Falcons last year.

Campbell said “there’s no legs” to the report.

“There’s been no contact from Auburn to us,” he said. “There’s been no contact from us to Auburn. That window has passed. Bobby is at Arkansas, happy at Arkansas and he’s going to be at Arkansas.”

Petrino — who met with the local media before Wednesday’s news — late appeared on the Sports Animals, an Arkansas radio show, and denied any interest. He said his heart and mind were at Arkansas.

“I’m really looking forward to the offseason and spring ball and getting started on next year,” Petrino said.

It’s no surprise Petrino’s name would surface at Auburn. While Louisville’s coach in 2003, the former Auburn assistant took part in a clandestine meeting with school officials about replacing Tuberville.

Even if Petrino were interested again, leaving Arkansas would be a challenge. Petrino has a $2.85 million buyout and a non-compete clause in his contract that won’t allow him to bolt to another SEC West school.

“People certainly test the parameters of what’s called a non-compete clause, but that was put in there with the express purpose of avoiding these kinds of situations where people speculate and put the rumors out there,” Campbell said. “There’s nothing to this.”