Just win, baby

Chris Del Conte, the new athletic director at the University of Texas, has been making the rounds trying to drum up financial support for a renovation of the south end zone area and football offices.

He has talked about the need to improve the "game day atmosphere" at Texas football games in an effort to combat falling attendance. He has proposed closing off San Jacinto Street and turning it into a game day festival. He has suggested having concerts before and after games in the parking lot of the LBJ Library just north of the stadium. He has moved both the band and student sections for the upcoming season.

But here's the dirty little secret, Chris. None of the peripheral stuff matters. A festival in front of the stadium won't help the situation. A concert up the street from the stadium won't matter, either.

When Texas was competing for national championships and conference championships, no one ever said a word about how boring things were outside the stadium and before the games. No one cared. The team was winning - and that made the game day atmosphere special. If you want to improve the game day atmosphere - put a winning product on the field.

Over the last five years UT has been a .500 team. That's pathetic. It's so pathetic that some folks are willing to give their left nut for an 8-win season in 2018.

That's right - for an 8-win season.

I'm a season ticket holder. I drive up to Austin four or five times a season. My kids love going - they don't care about the final score. They like hanging out on campus and stopping at Buc-cee's in Bastrop.

Texas hasn't had a good team since the 2009 squad that lost to Alabama in the title game after Colt McCoy was injured in the first quarter. It gets harder and harder to justify the expense of buying tickets and driving up to Austin after every loss.

I don't care what's going on around the stadium before the game. We're just as likely to go bowling at the Texas Union before the game as we are to go to the Alumni center or wander around campus or up and down the Drag.

Chris and his staff need to remember that it's a lot cheaper to sit on the couch with a cooler full of beer and watch Texas lose than it is to make the trek to Austin. That's the difference between winning and losing.

Goodbye, Mack

I just got back from seeing the sad ending to the Mack Brown era at Texas. I really wanted it to end differently than it did. I can't say I'm surprised, however.

My wife suggested I go to the Texas Exes viewing party to watch the Alamo Bowl tonight - so I did. As did my youngest daughter. The game stunk but we had fun. She drank her lemonade while I downed a couple of Shiners and we ate through the bag of goodies my wife packed for us.

She was completely oblivious to the score. She was there to watch the game and hang out with her old man. She was sad that Mack Brown was stepping down. When she heard he was being forced out (I'm not playing along with this resigning charade), she cried.

As I have written before, throughout this entire episode, Mack Brown has shown more class than all of his detractors. The final nail in the coffin was when the board of regents told UT President William Powers in a closed session that Mack had to go. Powers didn't even have the class to tell Mack face-to-face. He sent in the new AD, Steve Patterson, to do his dirty work.

What an example you set for the students on the Forty Acres.

And having the palace intrigue made public doesn't make the job any more desirable. Why would Jimbo Fisher or Art Briles want to leave to come to a school in which the regents will be plotting their demise after their first loss?

But, despite everything that went on behind his back, Mack Brown responded by my request and sent my youngest an autographed picture of him holding the trophy for winning the national championship. He didn't have to do it. But that's the kind of person Mack Brown is. There's a lesson in there for all of us.

Staying classy

The Mack Brown era at Texas is officially over. Regardless of the fact I think Mack should still be the coach of the Longhorns - after the BYU and Ole Miss losses it was all but a foregone conclusion that he was out after the season.

Through it all Mack showed far more class than any of his detractors showed. Just think about this for a second, one or more regents contacted Nicky Satan's agent last January while Mack was still under contract. And then someone felt the need to let the press know about it after the BYU loss.

During the entire season you've never heard Mack get cross with anyone when being asked about his status. His focus has been on the team. He never badmouthed anyone in public and never called out his detractors while the team was in the midst of their six game winning streak. Instead of being negative and bitter about what was going on around him, Mack Brown kept on his game face and pushed his team on one day at a time.

Mack made the decision to step down because he saw fractures developing in the football program and knew that if he came back for a 17th season there would be open rebellion. His decision allows time for supporters of the football team to come back together - at least until the selection is made.

There are a lot of folks who have forgotten the state of the football program when Mack came aboard. After Darrell Royal left after the 1976 season the Longhorns were in the mix for two national titles over the next 20+ seasons. In 1977 the Longhorns, ranked number one at the time, were routed by Notre Dame in the Cotton Bowl and, a few years later, lost to Georgia in the Cotton Bowl and blew their shot at (at least) a share of the national title. That was it until Mack Brown came to the Forty Acres.

The Fred Akers era ended in a nasty way. The team was irrelevant on the national stage. The years under David McWilliams were even worse. Then there was John Mackovic who, while introducing offensive innovations, never seemed to feel comfortable as the Texas coach.

Under Mack Brown the Longhorns won one national title, played for another (and who knows what might have been had Colt McCoy not been injured in the first quarter) and came within a game of playing for the title on two other occasions. No, two Big XII championships in 16 years wasn't satisfactory. But, Texas was relevant again.

The stadium was renovated and expanded to seat over 102, 000. The game day atmosphere in Austin is light-years ahead of what it was in the 1980's. UT's athletic department is the most profitable athletic department in the nation. The revenue from the Longhorn Network covers (or damn near covers) the cost of scholarships for non-revenue sports.

While the program has hit a rough skid, let's not forget that the Longhorns were but 30 minutes away from a conference title and a berth in the Fiesta Bowl this season - despite the horrid beginning of the season.

The road is littered with programs who forced out coaches the boosters didn't think were winning enough and found out, too late, that they made the wrong decision. For the sake of the program, I hope Texas didn't just make a similar mistake.

Thank you, Mack, for what you've done for the University of Texas.

See also:

"Happy trails to Mr. Football," Bryan Curtis, Grantland (12/16/13)

Is today Mack's last stand?

Today is being touted by some as Mack Brown's last stand. The feeling in some quarters is that anything short of a Texas win at the Cotton Bowl will lead to a coaching change at the end of the season.

With the upcoming retirement of UT Athletic Director DeLoss Dodds, it is very possible that there will be someone other than Mack Brown on the sideline when the Longhorns kick off the 2014 season. But, if you take a closer look at who may or may not be available, the odds may very well favor Mack Brown keeping his gig as the head man at the Forty Acres.

Keep in mind that if you want to show Mack Brown the door, you damn well better have someone in mind to take his place. Mack might not be the best coach in the country, but he's a damn sight better than most. You should also keep in mind where the University of Texas was when Mack Brown took over.

From the last year of Darrell Royal's tenure through the John Mackovic experiment, the Longhorns spent two decades wandering through the desert. Yes, they had the national title in hand in 1977 under Fred Akers - that is, until they were dismantled in the Cotton Bowl by Notre Dame. They had another shot a few years later until they lost to Georgia in the Cotton Bowl as well.

The three most attractive candidates for the job are Art Briles, Gary Patterson and Chris Peterson. But I think we can take Briles and Patterson out of the equation early. Both coach in the Big XII and I think it's extremely doubtful that either one would leave their post for the Texas job. That would leave Chris Peterson from Boise State. He has kept the level of play high despite being at a significant disadvantage in recruiting. Just imagine what he could do with the type of players he'd have in Austin.

But would he want to deal with all the distractions that come with being the coach at Texas? Would he be comfortable schmoozing with big donors? What about hosting two weekly shows on the Longhorn Network and being the star of a weekly behind-the-scenes show? And what about the media glare and the expectations that come with the job?

Once you get past the big three there just aren't that many serious candidates for the job. Maybe James Franklin at Vanderbilt - but would he be ready to step up? There's Charlie Strong at Louisville. He served as defensive coordinator at Florida under Urban Meyer. With his star quarterback graduating he might be willing to listen to offers. But is he ready for Texas? Then there's one more intriguing prospect that someone mentioned to me today - Mark Richt from Georgia.

He's got the experience coaching a major state school. His teams have competed for SEC titles. He is used to coaching in the spotlight and he's been on the hot seat before.  He is, from all appearances, a class act. But would he want to leave Athens to move to Austin?

I don't know who else is out there that Texas would consider. Any new coach has to be able to recruit. He has to be willing to schmooze. He has to be able to deal with the distractions that come via the Longhorn Network. He has to be strong enough to withstand the criticism that he isn't Mack Brown.

And, no, Nick Saban isn't coming to Austin.

So, for those of y'all wanting to shove Mack Brown out the door, who are you going to hire in his place?

Anyone?

The passing of a legend

The University of Texas lost an icon yesterday with the death of coaching legend Darrell Royal. Coach Royal led the Longhorns out of the wastelands and into the promised land, winning two national titles, 11 conference titles and 10 Cotton Bowls during his tenure.

He and Emory Bellard (later the head coach at Texas A&M), developed the wishbone offense that took the option to a whole new level. In the wishbone the quarterback was joined in the backfield by a fullback and two tailbacks. The quarterback then had the option to hand it to the fullback, pitch it to a tailback or take the ball up the field himself.

Once Coach Royal was asked why his teams didn't pass the ball more. He told the reporter that when you pass the ball only three things can happen and two of them, interception and incompletion, were bad. But the play he is remembered most for is the long pass on fourth down in the "Game of the Century" in 1969 against Arkansas in which Texas rallied to win 15-14 and was awarded the national championship.

Coach Royal did not care for his players celebrating after scoring touchdowns. He felt you should act like you've been there before and plan on being back in the future. If you've ever seen video of Earl Campbell in college or in the NFL he never spiked the ball and he never carried on after scoring. He just tossed the ball to the referee after he crossed the goal line.

The phrase he's most well-known for was his reply when a reporter asked why he wouldn't change things up when the Longhorns were in the midst of a losing streak. Coach Royal's answer was that you've got to dance with the one who brung ya'.

For almost two decades Texas coaches were compared to Darrell Royal. After his retirement, the University hired former assistant Fred Akers to take over the program. No matter what Akers did during his time in Austin, it was never good enough. It was never good enough because Fred Akers wasn't Darrell Royal.

And neither were David McWilliams or John Mackovic. It wasn't until Mack Brown came along that the shadow of Darrell Royal receded.

Rest in peace, Coach, and hook 'em!

Problems on the Forty Acres

36 points and 576 yards against Oklahoma State.

48 points and 460 yards against West Virginia.

63 points and 677 yards against Oklahoma.

50 points and 607 yards against Baylor.

That's what the Texas defense has given up the last four weeks. Somehow the Longhorns came out of it with two wins (one aided by what looked to be a bad call).

At its core, defense in football is very simple. You contain the ball carrier. You hit the ball carrier. You wrap your arms around the ball carrier. You take the ball carrier to the ground. Forget about schemes and blitz packages and nickels and dimes and every other variant of defense that's out there. It all starts and ends with tackling.

Phil Steele, the college football guru, had the Texas defense ranked high at the beginning of the season. According to Mr. Steele, the UT defensive line was ranked 4th. Their linebacker corps was ranked 20th. The defensive backfield came in as his number 1 ranked unit.

How wrong could one person be.

The Texas defense, and I'm not certain defense is the right word, has been downright horrible this season. Not one game has passed without someone gashing the Texas defense for a long touchdown run - well, except for New Mexico (but their main goal seemed to be to keep Texas under 100 points).

Mack Brown brought in Manny Diaz from Mississippi State two years ago to replace Will Muschamp who took the head coaching gig at Florida. Mr. Diaz was supposed to be the next big thing among defensive coordinators. Lots of pressure and exotic blitz packages were supposed to take Texas to the tops of the polls. Not quite.

The Longhorns lost a number of defensive starters this past season - but, as Texas fans know, the Longhorns just go out and reload every year. The saying is that Texas doesn't recruit, Texas picks who it wants. The recruiting classes under Mack Brown have been in the top 5 nationally most years.

And that raises an important question. Are the recruiting classes not as good as we've been led to believe, or do they just not receive the coaching they need to succeed? Judging by the missed tackles I'm seeing week in and week out, I have a feeling that it's the latter. And, if it is the latter, then Mr. Diaz is the one holding the bag.

But even though the  Longhorns gave up more points on Saturday than they did in either of those shootouts, Diaz said he's take the outcome anyway. 

"There are a lot of things we need to fix," Diaz said. "But there are a lot of things that are encouraging."

Those comments from Manny Diaz were taken from an article in the Houston Chronicle (the mobile edition) that has since been edited. Those comments tell you all you need to know about Mr. Diaz and the reason he should not be working at the defensive coordinator at the University of Texas. There was nothing encouraging about what the defense did on Saturday night.

If Mr. Diaz had any self respect he'd hand Mack Brown his resignation letter first thing Monday morning so the Longhorn Nation can put this nightmare behind it. I don't care how aggressive his defenses are supposed to be. I don't care how often they come on crazy blitz packages. I want to see them tackle people and keep them out of the end zone.

Please, Mack, fire Manny Diaz now.

Just win, baby

The Longhorns win the final installment of the Lone Star Shootout. And forever's an awfully long time.

Texas Fight, Texas Fight,
And it's goodbye to A&M.
Texas Fight, Texas Fight,
And we'll put over one more win.
Texas Fight, Texas Fight,
For it's Texas that we love best.
Hail, Hail, The gang's all here,
And it's good-bye to all the rest! 

(YELL) 

Yea Orange! Yea White!
Yea Longhorns! Fight! Fight! Fight!
Texas Fight! Texas Fight,
Yea Texas Fight!
Texas Fight! Texas Fight,
Yea Texas Fight! 

As for the Aggies... they'll be going from the 'Horns younger brother to the SEC's little b----.

Texas Fight!

I will be road-tripping up to Austin today with my oldest daughter for the UT season opener against Rice. This will be my daughter's first trip to Austin for a Texas football game. I can't wait to show her around the campus so she can get a feel for what football's supposed to be.

After the long hours and frustration of work, this is what life is all about. I will be such a proud dad as we walk hand-in-hand through the gate and up to our seats tonight. It's a night I hope she'll never forget.

Horns and Tide square off for all the roses

Tonight the Texas Longhorns and the Alabama Crimson Tide square off at the Rose Bowl to decide who is the BCS National Champion for 2009. If the 'Horns can keep Mark Ingram in check and if the Texas offensive line can give Colt McCoy enough time to find his receivers, I think they'll be lighting the Tower orange in Austin tonight.

Hook 'em!