Petrino, Wilson remember Ryan Mallett
News of the death of former Arkansas quarterback Ryan Mallett sent shockwaves across the football world Tuesday.
Mallett drowned at a beach in Destin, Florida, at the young age of 35. Teammates, coaches, friends and fans all poured out their condolences and sadness about the loss of a Razorback legend.
Former Arkansas head coach Bobby Petrino said in an interview with 103.7 The Buzz that it was hard to believe the news until he received a call from former Razorback center Travis Swanson.
"Certainly something that was shocking and something that happened way too soon," Petrino said. "We're going to miss Ryan. Ryan had that great ability to make everyone around him smile and happy. Just a young man that enjoyed life, enjoyed competing and was a great, great quarterback for us."
Mallett was a five-star prospect and the No. 2 quarterback in the nation on Rivals coming out of Texas High School in Texarkana, Texas, in the class of 2007. After spending his freshman season at Michigan, Mallett transferred to Arkansas, where he served as the starting quarterback for two seasons under head coach Bobby Petrino.
Before taking over as the starter, Mallett had to redshirt the 2008 season due to NCAA transfer rules. Petrino said that year was hard on Mallett, but the future was bright for the Hogs with the 6-foot-6 passer bought in.
Mallett's first season as the starter came in 2009, when he led the Razorbacks to an 8-5 record and a Liberty Bowl victory. That season, he broke the program record for passing yards in a season with 3,624 yards and his 30 passing touchdowns also broke the school record.
"Ryan made my job easy, because he loved to study football," Petrino said. "He just loved the game and he was extremely intelligent, understood it. He allowed you to call the game freely and be real aggressive. I always knew if there was a bad play, he would get us out of it and get us into a good play."
Mallett broke his own program records for passing yards and touchdowns in a season when he threw for 3,869 yards and 32 scores in 2010.
That 2010 season, Mallett led the Petrino-coached Razorbacks to a 10-2 record to earn a Sugar Bowl berth against Ohio State. Though the Buckeyes beat the Razorbacks, 31-26, Mallett's effort in his final game as a Hog brought excitement across the fanbase for the future.
"He had great courage," Petrino said. "That's one of the things we lack in our society right now is the courage to lead. The courage for a young man to be able to tell other young men 'This is how we're going to do it and this is the right way to do it.'
"Ryan was very, very courageous. He helped everybody really get on the same page and helped all of our players understand that we are tough. I think that was a big difference in our team, is he made everyone around him tough."
Mallett's 7,493 passing yards rank second in program history, right behind Tyler Wilson's 7,765 yards. Wilson served as Mallett's backup for the 2009-10 seasons before he took over as the starter in 2011.
Wilson said on ESPN Arkansas' "The Morning Rush" that he probably wouldn't have attended Arkansas if he knew Mallett was going to join the program in 2008, which was Wilson's true freshman season.
"I just looked at this guy and said, 'Man, this is about the biggest guy I've ever seen and he can throw it,'" Wilson said. "But he had a contagious personality. That's what I remember. You walk in a room and he'd smile and he'd high five. He brought a swagger and a dominant personality to any room that he walked in and that's what I remember first."
The first big moment of Wilson's career came at Auburn during the 2010 season. Mallett went down with a concussion and Wilson had to step in and duel eventual Heisman winner Cam Newton.
Wilson said he remembered Mallett encouraging him, high fiving him and being as big of a supporter as any other Arkansas player on the sideline during the loss to the Tigers.
"I will never forget that," Wilson said. "His support as a teammate in that moment that was a very tough moment for him."
While Wilson and Mallett were teammates and friends, Wilson described Mallett's relationship with Petrino as "unique" and said it was much closer than he ever had with Petrino.
"He wanted to spend time on the game, on understanding to get us on the same page," Petrino said. "He was a joyful young man, had a lot of courage. It didn't bother him one bit to walk in my office and sit down in the chair. Sometimes it was just about football and sometimes it was about everything else in life. That's what made it so fun."
Petrino has coached a lot of football and plenty of great quarterbacks. After watching Mallett and Petrino work together for three years, Wilson said there was no denying the bond those two had.
"I know there were tough days where probably Bobby had those disagreements and those frustrations and they probably had them with each other," Wilson said. "But the truth is, I know there is probably no quarterback, including me, that coach Petrino enjoyed coaching more than Ryan Mallett."
Mallett was selected in the third round of the 2011 NFL Draft by the New England Patriots. He was coached by legendary head coach Bill Belichick and he played behind seven-time Super Bowl champion Tom Brady.
After his time in New England, Mallett made stops in Houston and Baltimore before his seven-year NFL career came to a close. He started eight games and threw for 1,835 yards and nine touchdowns in the NFL.
Mallett left his mark on the league, as players such as Brady, J.J. Watt, Julian Edelman, Pat McAfee, Mark Ingram and more expressed their sadness on social media following the news. Belichick even released a statement on Tuesday evening.
"I am extremely saddened by Ryan's tragic passing," Belichick said. "My thoughts and prayers are with his family and the many people whose lives he touched."
The lives touched by Mallett continued to grow after his playing career, as he took up coaching in recent years.
After serving as the offensive coordinator at Mountain Home High School in 2021, Mallett took over as the head coach of White Hall High School football in February of 2022. His Bulldogs went 4-6 in his first year leading the program.
"I really feel bad for his players there," Petrino said. "They're going to miss him. His contagious personality and contagious energy is something that not everybody in this world has. He was able to be such a great leader and such a great influence. I know he was doing a great job there and was getting those guys to play with a lot of energy and a lot of pride."
Getting into coaching seemed to always be what Mallett was destined for. Having a passion and an unmatched love for the game of football allowed him to be a natural leader for others.
"I think the brilliance of Ryan, not only when we were in college and before college, is he was a baller," Wilson said. "That's what he lived for. Most of the time as a player, that weeds out a lot of people and how much they care about football, the locker room, teammates and wanting to win.
"I can usually say the people that get into coaching and get into the world of football after they're done playing, those people really love it. Ryan was one of those people. That's what he got up to do every morning and that's what he wanted to do. He wanted to figure out how to win and he wanted that locker room and that team mentality."
Mallett's loss hit his former Arkansas teammates hard as Wilson said he heard from an emotional Swanson, former defensive end Jake Bequette, former running back Knile Davis and he even talked with former quarterbacks coach Garrick McGee.
The loss of "1-5" will be felt around the Razorback community and fanbase for a long time and his impact on the program will always be remembered.
"I never had a brother, but it's the brothers that sometimes you disagree with and you have tough moments with and you don't realize how much they mean to you and what they mean to you until you don't get to have a conversation with them anymore," Wilson said.