Getting to Know Nick Petrino
Nick Petrino joined the Bears coaching staff in early 2020 as the team’s offensive coordinator under his father and former Bears head coach, Bobby Petrino.
During his fifth season in charge of the MoState offense in 2024, Petrino’s unit racked up 306.2 yards per game through the air (5th nationally), 424.8 total yards per game (17th) and 34.8 points per outing (13th). The Bears won eight straight games during the heart of the schedule with QB Jacob Clark earning first-team All-Valley honors and finishing 14th in the FCS Offensive Player of the Year voting.
In 2023, Petrino’s stellar offense catapulted Missouri State to the top of the FCS in numerous offensive categories, including No. 5 in the nation in passing offense (300.3), No. 7 in pass efficiency (158.77), 26th in total offense (400.8) and 31st in scoring (29.8).
Three offensive players landed on the 2023 All-MVFC squad, including first-team WR Raylen Sharpe, second-team RB Jacardia Wright and honorable mention OL Hutson Lillibridge. QB Jordan Pachot also earned a spot on the MVFC All-Newcomer Team. MSU receivers also earned national honors with Sharpe on the AP All-America team, Jmariyae Robinson on the Phil Steele Freshman All-America Team, and Terique Owens signing a free agent contract with the NFL’s San Francisco 49ers.
In 2022, Petrino’s offense eclipsed 4,000 total yards and scored better than 27 points per game. The unit also boasted a pair of All-MVFC selections in wide receiver Ty Scott and offensive lineman Landon Bebee. Scott would go on to sign an NFL free agent deal with the Kansas City Chiefs. The Bears also got a boost in Petrino’s third season from running back Jacardia Wright who earned a spot on the MVFC All-Newcomer Team after racking up 711 yards and 9 touchdowns in his first season in Springfield.
In 2021, the Bears returned to the FCS Playoffs, racking up 436.5 yards per game (16th) and 34.2 points per game (12th), both of which ranked in the top 20 among all FCS programs. He also boasted the MVFC Offensive Player of the Year and MVFC Newcomer of the Year in QB Jason Shelley who passed for a school-record 3,347 yards and finished 10th in the Walter Payton Award voting.
In his first season at MSU, Petrino’s offense yielded three All-Missouri Valley Football Conference selections and one MVFC All-Newcomer Team pick. His offense averaged 310 yards per game in MVFC games in 2020-21 and helped the Bears finish 5-1 in conference play to earn a share of the Missouri Valley title with an NCAA Playoff appearance.
Petrino spent the 2019 season as co-offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach at UT Martin where he mentored the Skyhawks’ second OVC Freshman of the Year in quarterback John Bachus III. A finalist for the Jerry Rice Award, given to the nation’s top freshman, Bachus ranked nationally in passing yards (2,549), passing yards per completion (13.56), passing touchdowns (18) and total offense (218.1 ypg). He also was tabbed to the OVC All-Newcomer squad while notching four OVC Newcomer of the Week and a pair of OVC Player of the Week honors. UTM ranked second in the OVC in pass efficiency (144.7).
Before his tenure at UT Martin, Petrino served on the coaching staff at the University of Louisville under his father, Bobby Petrino. During his tenure at Louisville from 2015-18, the Cardinals offense exploded to set several program records behind the dynamic play of Heisman Trophy winner Lamar Jackson. Jackson totaled a school-record eight 100-yard rushing games, while setting a school record with 1,571 yards on the ground and 21 touchdowns. He nearly duplicated his award-winning performance in 2017 by totaling 45 touchdowns and accounting for 5,261 yards of total offense. The third-year coach saw Jackson improve as a passer — completing a career-high 59.1 percent of his passes and throwing for 3,660 yards and 27 scores. Jackson was later drafted 32nd overall in the 2018 NFL Draft by the Ravens.
He spent the 2014-15 seasons as a grad assistant at Louisville, where he aided in the development of quarterbacks and wide receivers. He was also a student assistant at Western Kentucky for the 2013 season, where he assisted the quarterbacks coach and the offensive staff.
Petrino began his collegiate coaching career as a student coach at Arkansas in 2010-11, assisting with the development of the QBs as the Razorbacks finished 11-2, including a win in the 2011 Cotton Bowl.
A high school star, Petrino played quarterback at Trinity High School in St. Matthews, Ky. and helped the Shamrocks win back-to-back state titles in 2005 and 2006. He spent a semester at Georgetown (Ky.) College and eventually joined his father at Arkansas as a walk-on.
He graduated from WKU in 2014.
