Missouri State has hired Bobby Petrino as its new coach, the school announced Wednesday morning.
Petrino, 58, will be introduced Thursday morning at a news conference at JQH Arena in Springfield.
He last coached at Louisville in 2018 but was fired after a 2-8 start to the season.
Petrino went 77-35 in two stints as Louisville coach and has an overall record of 119-56 as a college coach at Louisville, Western Kentucky and Arkansas. He spent part of the 2007 season as the Atlanta Falcons' head coach but left for the Arkansas job after a 3-10 start.
He led Louisville to league titles in two conferences (Conference USA, Big East) during his first stint and coached Heisman Trophy winner Lamar Jackson there in 2016.
Petrino coached Arkansas to consecutive AP top-12 finishes in 2010 and 2011 but was fired in April 2012 after misleading the school about a relationship with a female staff member, whom he was with during a motorcycle accident.
Petrino replaces Dave Steckel, who parted ways with the school last week after going 13-42 in five seasons at Missouri State. Steckel, who had been under contract through 2021, accepted a $340,000 buyout.
The Bears play in the Missouri Valley Conference and are part of the NCAA Football Championship Subdivision.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.