UAB’s Dilfer recognizes Arkansas’ Petrino as one of the greatest offensive minds ever

BY DUDLEY E. DAWSON

FAYETTEVILLE – Former NFL Super Bowl winning quarterback and current UAB head football coach Trent Dilfer tossed out some colorful compliments to former NFL head coach and current Arkansas offensive coordinator Bobby Petrino on Monday.

Dilfer was previewing Saturday’s 3:15 p.m. game on the SEC Network between the Blazers (1-1) and host Razorbacks (1-1) at Reynolds Razorback Stadium and lauded Petrino and and Arkansas quarterback Taylen Green.

That pair has led an Arkansas offense that’s has compiled 1,335 yards total offense in a 70-0 win over UAPB and a 39-31 double overtime loss at Oklahoma State.

“We are going to play an SEC team that is loaded with one of the greatest offensive minds that has ever coached football at any level and a very talented quarterback,” Dilfer said. “ You put all that together and the challenge is immense and the quarterback makes it that much more.”

Dilfer expanded on his thoughts on Petrino, who was a head coach of the Atlanta Falcons, twice at Louisville and also at Arkansas and Missouri State.

“He has consistently been a puppet master offensively for years,” Dilfer said. “He will sit there and he knows the weakness of every defense and he’s going to call plays because he has got an arsenal to call. He makes you play eating your soup left handed.”

Both Petrino and Dilfer previously recruited Green, who started his college career at Boise State.

Green is 42 of 68 passing for 645 yards and 3 touchdowns and an interception while also rushing 24 times for a net 149 yards and 2 scores.

“Tremendous player, tremendous athlete,” Dilfer said. “…He’s got everything to play Sunday football. I know what a quarterback looks like that plays on Sunday and he looks like one of them. He can throw with the best of them. He can read defenses, his athletic and he has physical confidence because of his skill set. He’s poised. He’s got everything.”

The two teams last met in 2014 in Fayetteville in a game Arkansas won 45-17 and one featuring a TD pass from Razorback offensive lineman Sebastian Tretola to long snapper Alan D’Appolonio.

In its second season under Dilfer, UAB opened its campaign with a 41-3 home win over Alcorn State, but suffered a 32-6 loss at Louisiana-Monroe last Saturday night to fall to 5-9 in his short tenure in Birmingham.

Former Arkansas quarterback Alex Mortensen is the Blazers’ offensive coordinator and helped UAB set a record for total offense per game last season by averaging 450 per outing.

The Blazers are led offensively by senior quarterback Jacob Zeno (3,126 yards passing in 2023 with 20 TDs and 9 interceptions), 5-8 freshman receiver Kam Shanks and redshirt sophomore tailback Lee Beebe, Jr.

Zeno is 45 of 64 passing for 382 yards with a pair of touchdowns and two interceptions this season while Shanks has 10 catches for 116 yards and Beebe has rushed for 144 yards and 2 TDs.

But while UAB had 517 yards total offense against Alcorn State, the Blazers struggled in the second game with just 259 against ULM – 167 passing and 92 rushing.

“I would hope that when we criticize, which we deserve all the criticism in the world, that let’s be fair with the criticism – we all stunk,” Dilfer said. “Trent stunk, Mort stunk, the back stunk, the quarterback stunk and the offensive line stunk. We are all equal and culpable in that disaster offensively.

“But that is what is cool about this group. I didn’t have to tell them. That was obvious yesterday when we watched the film.”

Dilfer, a 14-year NFL vet who won a Super Bowl with the Baltimore Ravens in 2000, believes his team will put the loss behind it quickly.

“We flushed it and it is time to move on and we have a great challenge ahead of us in Arkansas,” Dilfer said. “We know the battle ahead and we are prepared to fight it.”

That’s not to say the loss wasn’t painful.

“I have been asked where does this fit in your losses and I have to admit it’s up there and it is one of the most painful,” Dilfer said. “But I was also look back at the most painful setbacks of my football career and – if handled the right way there are good things that come out it on the other end.

“I think where it snowballs is if you handle it in the wrong manner. I said to this to the team, to the coaches and to myself – let’s not forget what matters most in life is relationships and don’t let something bad to you affect the relationships in your life.”

He points out the locker room ones are the ones to focus on.

“And the relationships that are important right now are the ones in this building and we can’t, and we just won’t, get in a position where we left it affect the relationships that we worked so hard on because of a tremendous setback,” Dilfer said. “That just doesn’t fit with how we are wired.”

“But saying all that, this group has been fantastic to coach, their response to tough situations this year has been everything a coach could ask for and yesterday (Sunday) while painful, the response by the coaches and players was what I thought was appropriate for moving on.”

Photo courtesy of UAB

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