Razorbacks’ Bobby Petrino Boosts Foundation Giving

Arkansas football fans hope Coach Bobby Petrino leads the Razorbacks to more victories than last season.

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Petrino already has helped the Razorback Foundation Inc. have a better year than 2008. Petrino’s $100,000 gift to the Razorback Foundation is believed to be the largest by a sitting coach in school history.

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It also helped the athletic department’s fundraising arm increase its annual fund donations from $11.07 million in 2008 to $11.81 million through late July of this year. That represents an increase of more than 6.7 percent.

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Arkansas athletic director Jeff Long, in a statement released by the university, credited Razorback Foundation executive director Harold Horton for reaching out “to encourage those who had the means to increase their giving, to help offset those impacted by the economy.”

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“Countless supporters responded to the call and the net result was a growth in the annual fund,” the statement continued.

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Membership in the Razorback Foundation increased from 10,390 in November 2008 to 10,587 in June 2009, according to the release, and all 19 Arkansas head coaches — as well as members of the athletic department’s executive and senior administrative staffs — are members of the Razorback Foundation for the first time in school history.

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