JUMP TO:
- Why did Bobby Petrino get fired from Arkansas?
- Bobby Petrino motorcycle accident details
- Who is Jessica Dorrell?
- Bobby Petrino neck brace photos
- Is Bobby Petrino still married?
- Bobby Petrino record at Arkansas
- Where did Bobby Petrino coach after Arkansas?
It's been 13 years since one of the wildest scandals in all of college football broke -- Arkansas firing head coach Bobby Petrino. The decision came following Petrino's involvement in a motorcycle crash with an Arkansas football employee, Jessica Dorrell.
Petrino is now back at Arkansas, hired by former Razorbacks head coach Sam Pittman to be the Razorbacks' offensive coordinator in 2024. Midway through the 2025 season, after Arkansas fired Pittman, Petrino was named the team's interim head coach.
Here's a look back at the Petrino's scandal from 2012, and how it prompted his firing from Arkansas.
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Why did Bobby Petrino get fired from Arkansas?
Petrino got fired from Arkansas in April 2012, stemming from a motorcycle accident the coach had. On Arkansas' Highway 16, Petrino was involved in a motorcycle crash, riding with former All-SEC Arkansas volleyball player Jessica Dorrell on April 1. Petrino was 51 at the time, Dorrell being 25.
Initially, the reports surrounding Petrino's accident only indicated the head coach being involved. But Petrino was tipped off by a state trooper that a police report was set to be released on April 6 which indicated Dorrell as a passenger.
Just minutes before the report was set to become public, the head coach admitted to Arkansas AD Jeff Long that he was with Dorrell, and that he was also having an affair with her. Petrino was married with four children at the time.
While Arkansas athletic director Jeff Long initially suspended Petrino during an investigation, he was later fired for cause.
The head coach's firing was a result of Petrino failing to tell Long about Dorrell as a passenger, in addition to not being forthcoming with the school about the incident.
“The extramarital affair is not the reason he was terminated … it was not actionable,” Long said in a 2022 piece in The Athletic . “The dishonesty on multiple occasions and levels was something we could take action for.”
Arkansas' investigation also found that Petrino gave Dorrell $20,000 in cash to purchase a new Acura. A Sports Illustrated report revealed that Petrino also circumvented university affirmative action guidelines when he hired her.
The school fired Petrino for cause, which meant it didn't have to pay his $8.5 million buyout.
Bobby Petrino motorcycle accident details
According to police, Petrino, an avid motorcyclist, was riding on an Arkansas highway, when a gust of wind caused him to swerve off. The head coach initially told Long that the accident was caused by a glare from the sun. Petrino suffered four broken ribs and a cracked neck vertebra, in addition to several scratches on his face. He was taken to a small facility in Fayetteville, Physicians Specialty Hospital.
Dorrell was spotted in the office in the days that followed wearing a knee brace.
A few days after the accident, Petrino indicated in a press conference that he was the sole passenger in the accident:
But Petrino's story unraveled when news of Dorrell on the motorcycle was set to become public.
Here's more via an ESPN story:
Petrino, tipped off by the state trooper who usually provides security for him during the season, informed Long of Dorrell's presence 20 minutes before police released the report to the public and admitted to what he called a previous inappropriate relationship with Dorrell.
Long placed Petrino on paid leave that night, saying he was disappointed in Petrino and promising to review the coach's conduct.
As the review continued, state police released the audio of the 911 call reporting Petrino's accident. It revealed Petrino didn't want to call police following the crash, and a subsequent police report showed he asked if he was required to give the name of the passenger during the accident -- signs Long took as a cover-up attempt.
Petrino was forthcoming about Dorrell's name and presence with police, but only after misleading both Long and the public during his news conference. The school even released a statement from Petrino's family the day after the accident that said "no other individuals" were involved.
Who is Jessica Dorrell?
Jessica Dorrell was a former Arkansas volleyball player from Aledo, Texas who played for the Razorbacks from 2004-2008, listed as an outside hitter. She was an All-SEC player, and was hired earlier in 2012 as a student-athlete development coordinator within the football team.
Previously, she worked in fundraising for the Razorback Foundation, and at the time of the incident was engaged to Josh Morgan, who also worked as Arkansas' assistant strength coach for Arkansas' Olympic sports.
According to an Athletic article from 2022, Morgan and Dorrell are now married and have three children together. Per Morgan's LinkedIn profile, he works in physical education in Aledo, Dorrell's hometown. Jessica is listed as a coach for Aledo Volleyball Club. She has largely remained out of the spotlight since the incident.
Bobby Petrino neck brace photos
The photos of Petrino wearing the neck brace at the press conference will go down in college football history.
The images, even 13 years later are pretty surreal:
Everyone talks about Bobby Petrino’s neck brace in this picture. But you see that hat he’s wearing? Man got Arkansas to a Sugar Bowl. pic.twitter.com/Gclaj7bHqK
— NIT Stu (@nit_stu) November 28, 2023
Still my favorite college football picture ever.
— Girth = Worth (@GirthAlgar6969) August 30, 2024
A close second is Bobby Petrino in the neck brace. pic.twitter.com/cjGyTGIR8R
Apparently the brace is owned by former Arkansas women's basketball coach Mike Neighbors:
Former Arkansas women’s basketball head coach Mike Neighbors owns the infamous Bobby Petrino neck brace, according to @bmarcello.
— Grayson Pierce (@GraysonPierce4) October 10, 2025
"It's our generation's moment in time that we all remember. It's not to make fun of him, it's out of respect. It’s a Razorback moment that we all… pic.twitter.com/1EueREuLCb
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Is Bobby Petrino still married?
Yes, Petrino is still married to his wife, Becky. The two share two children and five grandchildren.
Bobby Petrino record at Arkansas
Petrino finished at Arkansas 34-18, and is the program's seventh-winningest coach in school history. He led the Razorbacks to three straight bowl games from 2009-2011. Arkansas ended the 2011 season with an 11-2 record and a No. 5 overall ranking following a 29-16 win over Kansas State in the Cotton Bowl.
So far as interim in 2025, Petrino is 0-1.
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Where did Bobby Petrino coach after Arkansas?
Petrino didn't take long to get a new head coaching job. He was hired by Western Kentucky in 2013, where he finished 8-4. He was then hired by Louisville before the 2014 season, and finished 77-35 with the Cardinals. He had a pair of nine-win seasons there in 2014 and 2016, but was fired after starting 2018 2-8.
He coached at Missouri State from 2020-2022, where Petrino finished 18-13. He was briefly hired as UNLV's offensive coordinator before accepting the Texas A&M OC job in Jan. 2023. He was hired back by Arkansas in Nov. 2023 as the Razorback's offensive coordinator.
Arkansas' athletic director in 2025 is Hunter Yurachek, who was previously athletic director at Coastal Carolina from 2010-15 and Huston from 2015-17 before arriving in Fayetteville.
Jeff Long went on to be Kansas' AD from 2018-21, and served on the first-ever College Football Playoff selection committee in 2013.
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