FAYETTEVILLE — Bob Petrino Sr. knows a lot of his former Carroll College football players have gone into coaching.
Exactly how many, he’s not sure. He’s lost count.
“More than 100,” Petrino Sr. said. “Maybe around 150.”
Many of his former players at Carroll College - an NAIA school in Helena, Mont., with an enrollment of 1,400 - are coaching in the high school or small college ranks.
There also are some in the NFL - St. Louis Rams special teams coach Tom McMahon and Cleveland Browns vice president for business operations Bryan Wiedmeier.
Petrino Sr.’s son, Paul, is offensive coordinator at Illinois.
But by far the greatest concentration of former Carroll College players in the national spotlight is at No. 15 Arkansas.
When Petrino Sr. makes the 1,500-mile trip from Helena to Fayetteville, he sees five of his former Carroll College players on the Razorbacks’ staff.
There is son Bobby Petrino, Arkansas’ head coach who calls the plays on offense. Other former Fighting Saints turned Razorbacks are Kris Cinkovich (wide receivers), Chris Klenakis (offensive line), Jason Veltkamp (strength and conditioning) and Kevin Peoples (director of high school relations).
“They’re good people,” Petrino Sr. said. “They’re hard workers, they’re very dedicated, they’ll give everything they’ve got, and they’re very knowledgeable in the game of football.
“It’s a real accomplishment for them to be at Arkansas, because graduating from a small school, they have to work that much harder to get to a big school.
“If you look at their resumes, they’ve all been around, they’ve paid the price. So I’m very happy for them, and I think they’re very deserving, and I know they’ll prove it this year.”
Klenakis said the number of former Saints at Arkansas is a tribute to Petrino Sr., an NAIA Hall of Fame inductee who led Carroll College to a 163-90-2 record in 1971-1997 and won 15 Frontier Conference championships.
“It was a tough program, there’s no question about it,” said Klenakis, who played outside linebacker. “You had to be focused, dedicated and disciplined to come through that program and graduate. And what was instilled in us by playing for Coach Petrino Sr. is still carrying on through our lives right now.”
Veltkamp, a center, said he was part of a freshman class of 30 players and among only five or six to finish as seniors playing for Petrino Sr.
“He was old school, and a lot of guys didn’t survive their first year,” Veltkamp said. “If you made it to your senior year, he was loyal to you for a lifetime. But it took a lot of loyalty and character to stay at that place.
“He created, or just pulled out of you, certain characteristics, and those were the guys who ended up staying.”
Cinkovich, who played guard, said Petrino Sr. was demanding but fair.
“You’d bust your butt to get a compliment from him,” Cinkovich said. “He had that way about him of being real tough, but then feeding you the sugar, too, and making you feel good about yourself. You’d just keep coming back for more.”
Paul Petrino was Arkansas’ offensive coordinator for two years before leaving after last season for Illinois, where he’s calling plays. Amid other changes at Arkansas after last season, Bobby Petrino hired Klenakis, Cinkovich and Peoples, as well as former Tennessee assistant Steve Caldwell.
Bobby Petrino, Cinkovich and Peoples also coached with the Saints for Petrino Sr.
But Bobby Petrino said he doesn’t make it a point to hire former Carroll College players.
“You keep a short list of guys that you know in the profession, guys you respect, and guys you’ve followed their careers and guys you’ve worked with before,” Petrino said. “When a job does become available, you always go out and try to find the best possible candidate you can.”
Veltkamp said Petrino knows “what was demanded from all of us” as Carroll College players.
“I think that’s some of the draw,” Veltkamp said. “It’s a good network of people, and they’re all grinders, I guarantee you that. And very, very loyal people.”
Cinkovich said he’s not surprised there are a group of former Carroll College players on the same staff at a BCS conference school.
“The ties are pretty strong, and of course they go back to Coach Bob Petrino and the fundamentals he taught us,” Cinkovich said. “I hope what we’re doing here not only is bringing attention to Arkansas but also to Carroll College, because it’s a wonderful school.”
Carroll College is a private Catholic liberal arts school established in 1909. According to the school’s web site, a majority of its students study biology and nursing and are accepted to medical and dentistry school.
“It’s basically a pre-med school,” Veltkamp said. “Most people are there to be doctors, dentists, nurses. But it’s also produced some pretty good coaches because of the football program.”
Carroll College began playing football in 1920 and won its first of 39 conference championships in 1926. John Gagliardi, whose 474 victories are a record for a college coach at any level, was Carroll College’s coach in 1949-1952 before going on to the Saint John’s University in Minnesota, where he’s still coaching.
Carroll College has won five NAIA titles since 2002, most recently in 2007, and the Saints are ranked No. 2 in the latest NAIA poll.
But the program struggled to a 31-44-1 record in 1958-1970 before Petrino Sr. became the Saints’ coach, leaving Butte (Mont.) Central High School.
“When I took the job, the school president told me, ‘If you don’t win the first year, we’re going to drop the program and go big-time for basketball,’ ” Petrino Sr. said. “So I either had a lot of confidence in myself or I was crazy.
“But we won three conference championships those first four years, so they decided not to drop football.”
Carroll College Athletic Director Bruce Parker said the football program wouldn’t be where it is today - including having its own stadium after playing in a city-owned facility - without the Petrinos.Bobby and Paul played quarterback at Carroll College for their father, and all three are in the school’s hall of fame.
“You see a lot of people around Helena wearing Razorback hats and sweatshirts,” Parker said. “The Petrino family means a lot to the community.”
Petrino Sr. and his wife, Patricia, continue to live in Helena but frequently visit Fayetteville and attend Arkansas’ practices and games.
“It’s great to have my dad here,” Bobby Petrino said. “He’s been a big part of my career, obviously.
“I’ve learned a lot from him growing up in a football family. He’s taught me a great foundation for what we believe in here and how we run the program.”
Petrino Sr. talked affectionately about all of his former players now at Arkansas and laughed when told how Veltkamp talked about the coach’s toughness.
“I’ve always had a lot of love for Jason, but he’s kind of ornery. He’s got a mean streak,” Petrino Sr. said. “I did run a hard-nosed program, I’ll say that, but probably not any harder than what Jason does in his weight room right now.”
Sports, Pages 21 on 09/29/2010