Here’s the video of this ridiculous event in Arkansas. The reporter asking the question, who was wearing a Florida hat, because she is a Florida alum, was fired the next day. We all knew Bobby Petrino could be a jerk, but hopefully he wasn’t a jerk enough to get the reporter fired over wearing a hat.
This is a calculated publicity stunt by Gork. Gork, married to an Arkansas journalist debuted on air less than a month ago and plays the part of the smart aleck, Gator fan antagonist on a radio show with fewer than 10,000 listeners. They were making a concerted effort to get more “edgy”.
The head nod and wink she’s making is that she grabbed the Gator hat “because it was raining”. The Razorbacks scrimmaged outside Saturday because there was no rain on Saturday and there has only been 0.01 inches for the month per http://www.weather.com/outlook/travel/businesstraveler/pastweather/USAR0522?locid=USAR0522&when=-3
Plus she was advised by another radio host from her station to remove the hat (the presser is indoors btw) but she chose not to do so.
So in the radio world of kayfabe feuds, callers who are plants, and controversy creates ad revenue, someone is trying to bring Boston-type manufactured hype (tripe) to little ol’ Northwest Arkansas.
Jerry Tipton knows you don’t wear UK gear to cover a Calipari press conference. You don’t wear Louisville gear either.
Petrino makes BCG seem like Father Flannagan.
Renee Gork was fired for her unprofessional comments she made both before and after the press conference incident. I know it’s easy to say “she was fired for wearing a hat” or “Petrino’s a big meany who got her fired”, but that doesn’t make it the truth. But who needs facts, right?
Sounds like damage control to me. She wears the hat. Petrino makes comment about the hat. Next day, she’s fired. Coincidence?
In smaller town, small time radio in the internet age, word can spread in the community like wild fire.
The advertisers on the radio station would not want to get the tag that they are Gator fans over Razorback fans. The return on investment is not very good.
The station would have so many open slots they just might be left playing PSAs advocating putting added limits on hunting. That would go over about as well as a Gator fan shock jock trying to grab 15 minutes and build a career.
In response to the Bobby Petrino incident, you know his a**h*ole attitude got her fired. He probably went and cried to to radio show to to get her fired. He is such a punk and douche bag. I hope Arkansas goes down this year just because he is such a little pu**sy.
John Clay: Why do you say we all know Petrino is a jerk? I don’t think he’s a jerk. On the hat issue, it’s never appropriate to wear a hat indoors anyway.
The surface reactions are a mixture of naivate and sexism.
Because it is a woman many jump to the conclusion, that an “Erin Andrews” just made an airhead mistake and is being harshly punished.
This is a calculating radio sports host. It’s Fabulous Sports Babe, Howard Stern’s assistant Robin, Alan Cutler, etc.
It’s someone who knows exactly what they are doing and that’s playing the media to make a name for herself.
It’s an example of the fringe media not trying to break the news but rather to be the news.
It’s a symptom of changing times when a kentuckysportsradio would replace a kentuckysports as their primary source for sports news.
Inability to exercise critical thought is speeding us down that track.
The only jerk here are the “reporters”, and I use the term loosely, that assume this is Petrino’s fault. Maybe before writing the article a small collection of facts may be warranted.
This was a sports reporter hired to be an antagonist to increase ratings of an upstart radio program with few listeners. She had until “hatgate” many public comments on twitter and facebook about how much she hated covering the hogs and how much she loved the gators. Not a problem unless you are hired by an Arkansas sports program to cover the hogs.
The excuse was rain even though there was no rain in Fayetteville that morning. Several people had questioned the hat, including quarterback Ryan Mallet, prior to the press conference. The smug reaction, lack of removal or apology after Petrino mentioned it, plus all her public comments were enough for the few listeners of the program to complain.
Now I ask you, if you go to work wearing your competitors logo and publicly complain about how much you hate doing your job, plus alienate all your customers, how long will you be employed. This was a calculated move to increase visability of an obscure radio show. It backfired, but something tells me she will be getting a sweet deal out of it in the end. Can you say cult status in gatorland.
@John Clay:
She acts unprofessionally in the aftermath of presser incident. She’s fired. Coincidence? Might as well blame the weather for her firing, as well. Sheesh.
I’ll help you out with the time line, though. Presser was on Saturday morning. She was fired _Monday_ morning. That’s an awful lot of time to elapse for someone who says she “didn’t get a chance to apologize”.
Petrino is a jerk. Yeah, she shouldn’t have done it, but get over it. She is a “Reporter” not a fan or booster. But ofcourse some of the SEC coaches tend to whine about stuff and forget the fact they really have nothing to whine about since they’re millionaires. I remember reading that everyone pretty much had tiptoe around him at Louisville. He had no respect for the Louisville program whatsoever. He just wanted to do what he needed to do to get out of there. His team would be practicing bowl games and he had a curfew for all this players, but yet he was out talking to LSU one year, Florida one year, and the Oakland Raiders and Notre Dame another. Tom Jurich worked hard to get him a big contract and spit on it and went to the Falcons into the night only to leave when the going got tough after not even finishing the season. He may be a good coach, but as a person, he needs to learn some ethics and how to treat people. If I had a son who played football, he would definitely not be allowed one step in my house. So have fun “using him” to win games and have impressive offenses Arkansas, just don’t get burned by him.
Who doesn’t know that Petrino is a jerk? I don’t say this as a UK fan. I say this as an Atlanta Falcons fan. If you don’t know the story of how he left Atlanta, then read up it. Then please find a way to explain how Petrino is anything but the biggest D*&%# BAG in football – pro or college.
Bobby Petrino is a punk and a big cry baby…i think he should leave Arkansas I’m tired of the punk….in the service we would have put a fart sack over him tied the end of it and put him in a shower upside down and turn on the HOT water to teach him a leason about keeping his mouth shut on things that don’t mean nothing…….he got that girl fired and I want him fired…that simple…