Bobby Petrino is all for providing headset communication in college football. He also had some interesting comments for Clemson during his introductory press conference at Arkansas.
On Thursday, head coach Sam Pittman and Petrino met with the media to discuss Petrino’s return as the program’s offensive coordinator. Petrino was asked about the future of signaling in college football, and the new OC gave his support to in-helmet devices.
“Yeah, I think they should have done it a long time ago,” Petrino said in reference to the helmet’s built-in communication devices.
As for the sign-stealing scandal in Michigan, Petrino admitted to not being aware of the details. However, he referenced playing at Clemson knowing the Tigers “would have your signals” in advance.
“I don’t know anything about Michigan and what they did or anything about it. Honestly, I didn’t pay attention to it, but I know when you went to play against Clemson, they were going to get your signals,” Petrino said. “Guys on the side, standing with a sheet of paper with your signals on it. And it was difficult.
Overall, Petrino said the SEC and ACC have been discussing the topic of communications devices for some time, but the issue boils down to the fact that each NCAA program maintains a vote on major issues.
“The SEC and ACC have been talking for years about getting the ball rolling. And one of the problems that we always have in the NCAA is that everyone has the right to vote. There are a lot of schools that play football that can outvote the big conferences that don’t have the money to have this technology in their helmets,” Petrino said. “That’s why they have to do something.” It has become more and more relevant.
