Skip to main content

Louisville's Petrino, Grantham call reported friction laughable

Louisville quickly responded to a Sports Illustrated report that head coach Bobby Petrino was feuding with staff members and players.

They did so by having a laugh at the report and dismissing it.

"(I'm) very happy here, my family is very happy here. Louisville is a great place... we're just getting started here," Grantham told FootballScoop.com. "This is probably one of the best camps I've ever been in.

"No one's asked me for a comment or even questioned me on anything like that. I laughed it off and moved on."

Petrino echoed that sentiment when talking with the media.

"Like Todd said, it's kind of laughable," Petrino said Tuesday. "I have the utmost respect for Todd. I think he's an expert at everything he does on defense. It's great having him here because of his intensity, his knowledge, and with me being able to work on offense and him run the entire defense.

"We have a great relationship. We have the utmost respect for each other. We're having a really good time in camp and I see our players getting better and smarter on defense every day."

Sports Illustrated reported that a source inside the program said Petrino's relationship with Grantham had soured and that the head coach was looking to fire his new defensive coordinator. Grantham was lured to Louisville for Georgia with a hefty five-year, $1 million per season contract.

Neither Petrino or Grantham have the brightest of reputations after difficulties at previous stops, and each is known for their fiery attitudes on the practice fields. Apparently things are ok between the two now, but the report might be something to keep in the back of one's mind when things get tough during the season for the Cardinals.

Louisville opens the season on Sept. 1 at home against Miami (Fla.) in its first game as a member of the ACC.

Follow Bryan Fischer on Twitter @BryanDFischer.