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Mack Brown Tarheel Football: The Orange Slice Boogaloo


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Posted

I was fortunate enough to have some beers with DKR and the only person he ever said anything remotely negative about was Switzer.  He hated him and mentioned that the only reason he wasn't in the CFB hall of fame yet was because DKR did all he could to block him.

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Posted
3 minutes ago, Not a cat said:

I was fortunate enough to have some beers with DKR and the only person he ever said anything remotely negative about was Switzer.  He hated him and mentioned that the only reason he wasn't in the CFB hall of fame yet was because DKR did all he could to block him.

I got to talk to DKR some too. I remember one night at the Broken Spoke he was there, and I pointed him out to some friends of mine. One of them had a book in his car for some reason that DKR had written about his life, and he went and got it. He said you know him some and asked me to go with him to where Coach Royal was sitting. I took him over there and introduced him and he asked DKR to sign his book. He said he didn't like signing things in public because it drew a crowd to him. He took out a pen and wrote down his phone number and address on two cards and gave us each one. He said if we called him and told him we were coming to his house, he would sign things. My friend was kind of shocked and we walked away. I told him that's how Coach was. I never called him, didn't really want to bother him and neither did my friend. As time goes by, I sort of wish I had, but I got to see him more times after that and talk to him. I still think about going to DKR's house and having some things signed and he would probably say to set down. I think about maybe meeting his wife and asking some things and having him tell some Longhorn football stories. I had a good opening thing to say because of one of his top assistant coaches Charlie Shira. He went to Mississippi State with Emory Bellard, who was named head coach there. I met Shira's daughter Lorette, at the 1981 College World Series when Mississippi State was there. She told me about her dad and a great story. She was born the week of the 1963 OU game, and the Texas team dedicated the game to her. They won and presented the game ball to Coach Shira to give to her and she still had that ball. I kept in contact with her. She called me after Texas won the SWC and asked if I would like to go the 1982 Cotton Bowl with her and her family, they had tickets. Of course, I went, and we sat dead on the fifty-yard line and watched Texas beat Alabama 14-12 on Brewer's quarterback draw.

Coach Royal was good friends with Joe Paterno, and he died without knowing about the sex scandal at Penn State. He always thought Paterno was just like him about not cheating and doing things the right way. Paterno also before the child abuse scandal came to light used to say that he wouldn't retire from coaching, as long as someone like Switzer was still around. That didn't age well, and I always wonder what DKR would have said about Paterno if he had lived to know about what ole Joe had done. I think we all know.

DKR was hired to beat OU, and he did. He went from being a star quarterback at OU und Bud Wilkenson to hating OU and of course Switzer. He couldn't believe OU would let Switzer do whatever he wanted as long as he won titles. At least Switzer did admit to spying on Texas practices with an OU coach. That incident and the denial of it ever happening really enraged DKR and with the continued cheating might have been the last straw that led to his retirement.

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Posted
22 hours ago, Steamboat1874 said:

People ?

You mean morons ?

Go ahead and bitch about him if you like but you might want to check his record.

Give it a rest, Sally.

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Posted
I contend Vince Young saved Mack Brown’s  and Greg Davis job.   
 

Recruiting good players is a pretty important part of the job.

The Mack Brown hate around here is more than a just a little bit of bitchassedness. Yes, he was imperfect and yes, too many OU skullfuckings and too few conference championships. But he’s far and away the 2nd best coach in program history and we only hope Sark can challenge that.

I was in school from 1985-1989. Y’all look that shit up and think about Texas being a small time nothing on the national scene. I think it was 1985 and Aggy was on probation and we played Baylor Thanksgiving weekend. I swear there weren’t 50,000 at that game. We’d engage in a circle jerk if a player from Dallas Carter or (gasp!) Florida listed us in his top 5 and “considered” a visit. We had a recruiting class in which Duane Duncum (or maybe it was his brother Bobby) was the sole rated recruit. Bubba fucking Moffet played meaningful (such as they were) downs at safety.

And no, he’s never been a “football genius” but he’s not an idiot either. You don’t accidentally win 250+ games. I swear to God I never heard the term “explosive play” until Mack started using it. Now “explosive” is a noun and it’s used 100 times every Saturday.

In the spirit of the day, and despite how it all ended…I’m thankful for Mack Brown rebuilding and re-establishing Texas Football and wish him the best in his golden years
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Posted

Recruiting good players is a pretty important part of the job.

The Mack Brown hate around here is more than a just a little bit of bitchassedness. Yes, he was imperfect and yes, too many OU skullfuckings and too few conference championships. But he’s far and away the 2nd best coach in program history and we only hope Sark can challenge that.

I was in school from 1985-1989. Y’all look that shit up and think about Texas being a small time nothing on the national scene. I think it was 1985 and Aggy was on probation and we played Baylor Thanksgiving weekend. I swear there weren’t 50,000 at that game. We’d engage in a circle jerk if a player from Dallas Carter or (gasp!) Florida listed us in his top 5 and “considered” a visit. We had a recruiting class in which Duane Duncum (or maybe it was his brother Bobby) was the sole rated recruit. Bubba fucking Moffet played meaningful (such as they were) downs at safety.

And no, he’s never been a “football genius” but he’s not an idiot either. You don’t accidentally win 250+ games. I swear to God I never heard the term “explosive play” until Mack started using it. Now “explosive” is a noun and it’s used 100 times every Saturday.

In the spirit of the day, and despite how it all ended…I’m thankful for Mack Brown rebuilding and re-establishing Texas Football and wish him the best in his golden years

I don’t have to look those years up, I lived them too. 86-90. Remember sitting in the rain and losing 50-7 to fucking Baylor? I know, too soon.

Your post is spot on. I can both love Mack for the awesome things he did and be annoyed af at some of the total bitch things he did. Both are true. That’s why it’s an odd legacy.
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Posted
8 minutes ago, tbone_ said:


I don’t have to look those years up, I lived them too. 86-90. Remember sitting in the rain and losing 50-7 to fucking Baylor? I know, too soon.

Your post is spot on. I can both love Mack for the awesome things he did and be annoyed af at some of the total bitch things he did. Both are true. That’s why it’s an odd legacy.

This.  Agreed.  50-7 was absolutely brutal.  Offff...

Posted

I agree that Mack left an odd legacy here. He did restore the UT program back to prominence. on the other hand, there were those embarrassing losses to OU. Real seal clubbings i you ask me.  He may have won a lot of games  but the lack of conference titles will always be a stain on his record. IMHO, comparing Mack to DKR is rediculous.  Coach Royal won 11 SWC titles as well as 3 MNSs. He also projected confidence and absolutely hated losing. You just know any problems with Royal coached teams were going to get fixed.  I never got that vibe with Mack Brown/

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Posted

Mack Brown is great in restoring programs just don't ask him to win championships.  He doesn't know how. Nor is he willing to make the changes necessary to win them. It was flat out depressing that Mack appeared be satisfied in having  OU take over the Big XII.

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Posted
52 minutes ago, tbone_ said:


I don’t have to look those years up, I lived them too. 86-90. 

87 - 91 here

Shock the Nation season was both surprising and euphoric. Beatdown of #5 UH at home was the most fun I've had at DKR. I believe that's the last time fans have rushed the field, right?

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Posted
4 minutes ago, DFW Horn said:

87 - 91 here

Shock the Nation season was both surprising and euphoric. Beatdown of #5 UH at home was the most fun I've had at DKR. I believe that's the last time fans have rushed the field, right?

Were you that idiot who wouldn’t get off the goal post?

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Posted
59 minutes ago, RC Horn said:

I agree that Mack left an odd legacy here. He did restore the UT program back to prominence. on the other hand, there were those embarrassing losses to OU. Real seal clubbings i you ask me.  He may have won a lot of games  but the lack of conference titles will always be a stain on his record. IMHO, comparing Mack to DKR is rediculous.  Coach Royal won 11 SWC titles as well as 3 MNSs. He also projected confidence and absolutely hated losing. You just know any problems with Royal coached teams were going to get fixed.  I never got that vibe with Mack Brown/

Nothing invigorates someone’s reputation like dying. When Mack Brown passes away, there will be an outpouring of love that will amaze us all. Happens all the time. 

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Posted
8 minutes ago, TreatyOak said:

Nothing invigorates someone’s reputation like dying. When Mack Brown passes away, there will be an outpouring of love that will amaze us all. Happens all the time. 

He'll be too busy killing himself recruiting in Florida to die.

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Posted
2 hours ago, MirrOlure said:


Recruiting good players is a pretty important part of the job.

The Mack Brown hate around here is more than a just a little bit of bitchassedness. Yes, he was imperfect and yes, too many OU skullfuckings and too few conference championships. But he’s far and away the 2nd best coach in program history and we only hope Sark can challenge that.

I was in school from 1985-1989. Y’all look that shit up and think about Texas being a small time nothing on the national scene. I think it was 1985 and Aggy was on probation and we played Baylor Thanksgiving weekend. I swear there weren’t 50,000 at that game. We’d engage in a circle jerk if a player from Dallas Carter or (gasp!) Florida listed us in his top 5 and “considered” a visit. We had a recruiting class in which Duane Duncum (or maybe it was his brother Bobby) was the sole rated recruit. Bubba fucking Moffet played meaningful (such as they were) downs at safety.

And no, he’s never been a “football genius” but he’s not an idiot either. You don’t accidentally win 250+ games. I swear to God I never heard the term “explosive play” until Mack started using it. Now “explosive” is a noun and it’s used 100 times every Saturday.

In the spirit of the day, and despite how it all ended…I’m thankful for Mack Brown rebuilding and re-establishing Texas Football and wish him the best in his golden years emoji1598.png

I don’t disagree much at all.   In 2003 we were 10-3 suffering one of our worst ass whoopingsfrom OU which the previous happened in 2000 under Mack’s watch.  On top of that we lost to Arkansas and the Holiday Bowl against Washigton Fricken State.   We lost to OU in 2004, but ended the year with Vince doing his thing against Michigan at the Rose Bowl.  I might be wrong, but I seem to recall the chatter was on the sports talk shows and message boards of the day that Mack was on the hot seat going into the 2004 season.   

I never hated Mack like some on here and the fan base, but I do believe he voluntarily overstayed his tenure.  The writing was on the wall with five star recruits who were a bust along with staff changes that busted too (see Manny Diaz).   Had he left even on a low note without being forced out,  the University, Alums and fan base would’ve been forgiving.   Or at least much more than some are now.

And yes I recall the late 80’s.  I was in high school then and was the only kid in my school that seemed to not drink the maroon kool aid.   And aggy likes to call our fan base T-shirt fans.   They were the pioneers of T Shirt fans and this is before Academy or fill in your favorite mass merchandise store got involved in promoting College teams with a large selection of merchandise like they do now. It was insufferable along with the condition of our program during that era.  

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Posted
1 hour ago, TreatyOak said:

Nothing invigorates someone’s reputation like dying. When Mack Brown passes away, there will be an outpouring of love that will amaze us all. Happens all the time. 

Fred Akers got his due although he was inducted into the Hall of Honor several years before he passed.   I always thought the Akers hate was overboard considering the era he coached in was pretty intense and topped off with SMU, aggy, and OU cheating  their asses off.  It’s a shame only SMU got the death penalty because aggy and OU were certainly eligible for the same.  

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Posted

Horn80 summary is one of the best I have read. The comment about Gilbert is especially insightful. As I recall Mack once said he was able to select players and did not have to recruit much. After the Colt injury and lost NC Mack just mailed it in and let Jamal run interference for him until even that support could not save him.   

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Posted
The comparison to Jimbo is apt but aggy had the once in eternity display of sense to get rid of him quickly.  

Yea everything about their whole affair with Jimbo reeks of good sense.
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Posted
1 hour ago, Scuba Saba said:

The comparison to Jimbo is apt but aggy had the once in eternity display of sense to get rid of him quickly.  

 

3 minutes ago, tbone_ said:


Yea everything about their whole affair with Jimbo reeks of good sense.

4d chess when they gave him that guaranteed 10 year extension some 3 years into an already 10 year guaranteed contract.

 

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Posted
5 hours ago, Nueces River Rat said:

I don’t disagree much at all.   In 2003 we were 10-3 suffering one of our worst ass whoopingsfrom OU which the previous happened in 2000 under Mack’s watch.  On top of that we lost to Arkansas and the Holiday Bowl against Washigton Fricken State.   We lost to OU in 2004, but ended the year with Vince doing his thing against Michigan at the Rose Bowl.  I might be wrong, but I seem to recall the chatter was on the sports talk shows and message boards of the day that Mack was on the hot seat going into the 2004 season.   

I never hated Mack like some on here and the fan base, but I do believe he voluntarily overstayed his tenure.  The writing was on the wall with five star recruits who were a bust along with staff changes that busted too (see Manny Diaz).   Had he left even on a low note without being forced out,  the University, Alums and fan base would’ve been forgiving.   Or at least much more than some are now.

And yes I recall the late 80’s.  I was in high school then and was the only kid in my school that seemed to not drink the maroon kool aid.   And aggy likes to call our fan base T-shirt fans.   They were the pioneers of T Shirt fans and this is before Academy or fill in your favorite mass merchandise store got involved in promoting College teams with a large selection of merchandise like they do now. It was insufferable along with the condition of our program during that era.  

I really wish there was a “Longhorn Football History” thread. I was born in 1988, became a Texas fan in 1998 (Ricky is my favorite Horn) all I know of Royal and Akers era is LHN specials and articles. 
 

Aggy loves to gloat about their record over Texas in the 80s and early 90s, to which I always remind them coincides with them cheating their little dicks off. The response is always “sTuPiD SiP eVeRyOnE wAs ChEaTiN bAcK tHeN” looking at our record during that period, Texas must’ve really sucked ass at cheating.

I say all this to ask, WTF happened after barely missing another title in 1983? What lead to hiring the Mick’s (McWilliams/Mackovic) The 80s & 90s were Texas football hell.

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Posted
24 minutes ago, deft said:


We sat through some shitty saturdays in October in the 00’s

And a couple in the '10s too

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Big Tex went full Thích Quảng Đức self immolation protest mode because of it.

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Posted
2 hours ago, RoyalBevo21 said:

I really wish there was a “Longhorn Football History” thread. I was born in 1988, became a Texas fan in 1998 (Ricky is my favorite Horn) all I know of Royal and Akers era is LHN specials and articles. 
 

Aggy loves to gloat about their record over Texas in the 80s and early 90s, to which I always remind them coincides with them cheating their little dicks off. The response is always “sTuPiD SiP eVeRyOnE wAs ChEaTiN bAcK tHeN” looking at our record during that period, Texas must’ve really sucked ass at cheating.

I say all this to ask, WTF happened after barely missing another title in 1983? What lead to hiring the Mick’s (McWilliams/Mackovic) The 80s & 90s were Texas football hell.

There's  a lot, but two things stick out to me. Each sport had its set of boosters,  they were idiots.  Not everyone cheated,  but a lot did, so recruiting was slim pickings. 

They were bad hires, Coach Royal wanted someone else, we hired Akers.  McWilliams had a good season at Tech, that's it. Mackovic had some NFL experience,  not good, but he had some. 

We were just so archaic and arrogant. Yet somehow myself and many others grew up Longhorn fans.

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Posted (edited)
On 11/27/2024 at 4:58 AM, 52-80 said:

Every year I was on campus and years afterward as a fresh alum, "my team" was one of the best in the country and could beat any team in any given week.

Very few UT cohorts, or any other program's cohort, have the luxury of that feeling.

For that, I'll be forever grateful to ole Mack.

Well, I got Shock the Nation, plus the shocker in Dallas.

Edited by TwiceHorn
Posted (edited)
2 hours ago, RoyalBevo21 said:

I really wish there was a “Longhorn Football History” thread. I was born in 1988, became a Texas fan in 1998 (Ricky is my favorite Horn) all I know of Royal and Akers era is LHN specials and articles. 
 

Aggy loves to gloat about their record over Texas in the 80s and early 90s, to which I always remind them coincides with them cheating their little dicks off. The response is always “sTuPiD SiP eVeRyOnE wAs ChEaTiN bAcK tHeN” looking at our record during that period, Texas must’ve really sucked ass at cheating.

I say all this to ask, WTF happened after barely missing another title in 1983? What lead to hiring the Mick’s (McWilliams/Mackovic) The 80s & 90s were Texas football hell.

McWilliams was an Assistant under both Royal and Akers who went to Tech as HC for one season and returned as HC when we fired Akers.  He was forced out a year after Miami embarrassed the shit out of us in the Cotton Bowl.   We kind of sucked before that season and went back to it after that loss. I think he was hired because of his deep ties to the Royal era both as a player and Coach.   Alums don’t necessarily make the good coaches at their former school either because of the expectations game.   

Mackovic was hired after some moderate success at Illinois and kind of had a run similar to McWilliams.   Two mediocre seasons to start which sandwiched two decent seasons for which the last one featured the infamous “Route 66” loss to UCLA in Austin.  Mackovic much like Herman and Strong was touted by the sports media of the day as the next wonder coach who was going to lead blue blood out of oblivion.   It didn’t quite workout.  

Edited by Nueces River Rat
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Posted
28 minutes ago, Nueces River Rat said:

McWilliams was an Assistant under both Royal and Akers who went to Tech as HC for one season and returned as HC when we fired Akers.  He was forced out a year after Miami embarrassed the shit out of us in the Cotton Bowl.   We kind of sucked before that season and went back to it after that loss. I think he was hired because of his deep ties to the Royal era both as a player and Coach.   Alums don’t necessarily make the good coaches at their former school either because of the expectations game.   

Mackovic was hired after some moderate success at Illinois and kind of had a run similar to McWilliams.   Two mediocre seasons to start which sandwiched two decent seasons for which the last one featured the infamous “Route 66” loss to UCLA in Austin.  Mackovic much like Herman and Strong was touted by the sports media of the day as the next wonder coach who was going to lead blue blood out of oblivion.   It didn’t quite workout.  


Man, the things Texas could achieve without egos of bmd’s in the way. Like damn, were those two really the best Texas could do? Sounds like a comfort hire and a hopeful up and comer hire. Makes my appreciation for CDC even deeper.

Posted
14 minutes ago, RoyalBevo21 said:


Man, the things Texas could achieve without egos of bmd’s in the way. Like damn, were those two really the best Texas could do? Sounds like a comfort hire and a hopeful up and comer hire. Makes my appreciation for CDC even deeper.

Indeed we had a chance to fix things in the late 80’s, but fucked up.   A&M got slapped by the NCAA and Sherril left town and RC’s debut wasn’t  stellar.  Switzer was forced to leave OU thanks to the NCAA hammering them and several of their players ending up in Criminal court.  SMU was coming off the death penalty.   Yea, we should’ve been filling that vacuum big time with recruiting.   

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Posted
28 minutes ago, Nueces River Rat said:

Indeed we had a chance to fix things in the late 80’s, but fucked up.   A&M got slapped by the NCAA and Sherril left town and RC’s debut wasn’t  stellar.  Switzer was forced to leave OU thanks to the NCAA hammering them and several of their players ending up in Criminal court.  SMU was coming off the death penalty.   Yea, we should’ve been filling that vacuum big time with recruiting.   

Probably why players like Jesse Armstead ends up in Miami and Tim Brown goes to Notre Dame. Weird time in the region none of the Texas or Oklahoma schools were very good in the 90s. 

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Posted
1 hour ago, Nueces River Rat said:

McWilliams was an Assistant under both Royal and Akers who went to Tech as HC for one season and returned as HC when we fired Akers.  He was forced out a year after Miami embarrassed the shit out of us in the Cotton Bowl.   We kind of sucked before that season and went back to it after that loss. I think he was hired because of his deep ties to the Royal era both as a player and Coach.   Alums don’t necessarily make the good coaches at their former school either because of the expectations game.   

Mackovic was hired after some moderate success at Illinois and kind of had a run similar to McWilliams.   Two mediocre seasons to start which sandwiched two decent seasons for which the last one featured the infamous “Route 66” loss to UCLA in Austin.  Mackovic much like Herman and Strong was touted by the sports media of the day as the next wonder coach who was going to lead blue blood out of oblivion.   It didn’t quite workout.  

Yeah, he was intended or hoped to heal the rift that opened up when Royal went to AD and Erwin and the BOR refused to hire Mike Campbell.  IIRC, from Bleeding Burnt Orange, some BMDs, among others, were pretty seriously alienated by that whole deal.  And a lot of Royal's players were getting to be pretty big deals in the business world by then.

He didn't work out as a coach, but he was none the worse for the experience, I think, as pointed out upthread he happily contributed to the program for many years.  

Dodds wasn't so great at athletics, but he was a good fundraiser and good at the business aspects of it, and although McWilliams didn't quite pan out as a coach, his hiring accomplished its intended purpose, or at least a major one.

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Posted
8 hours ago, Nueces River Rat said:

McWilliams was an Assistant under both Royal and Akers who went to Tech as HC for one season and returned as HC when we fired Akers.  He was forced out a year after Miami embarrassed the shit out of us in the Cotton Bowl.   We kind of sucked before that season and went back to it after that loss. I think he was hired because of his deep ties to the Royal era both as a player and Coach.   Alums don’t necessarily make the good coaches at their former school either because of the expectations game.   

Mackovic was hired after some moderate success at Illinois and kind of had a run similar to McWilliams.   Two mediocre seasons to start which sandwiched two decent seasons for which the last one featured the infamous “Route 66” loss to UCLA in Austin.  Mackovic much like Herman and Strong was touted by the sports media of the day as the next wonder coach who was going to lead blue blood out of oblivion.   It didn’t quite workout.  

Mackovic wasn't a bad hire at the time. You have to remember our offense at the time was like something out of the Stone Age, had been for a while, the 1990 fluke aside, and the fan base was sick of it.  Mackovic was brought in to fix that, and he largely did. His weakness was defense. Ironically, by getting fired when he did, he left the program in much better shape than McWilliams. The bad taste of that 4-7 season in 97 disguised a roster in relatively decent shape, which helped Mack Brown's regime get a jump start in 98. McWilliams left a total rebuild in his wake.

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Posted
32 minutes ago, Tired Horn said:

Mackovic wasn't a bad hire at the time. You have to remember our offense at the time was like something out of the Stone Age, had been for a while, the 1990 fluke aside, and the fan base was sick of it.  Mackovic was brought in to fix that, and he largely did. His weakness was defense. Ironically, by getting fired when he did, he left the program in much better shape than McWilliams. The bad taste of that 4-7 season in 97 disguised a roster in relatively decent shape, which helped Mack Brown's regime get a jump start in 98. McWilliams left a total rebuild in his wake.

 

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Posted

My like of Mack Brown was lobbying to play in the Rose Bowl against Michigan and winning 

My dislike of Mack Brown was losing to OU. I would have been content if that was our only win but for that, happy trails.

Posted
3 hours ago, Tired Horn said:

Mackovic wasn't a bad hire at the time. You have to remember our offense at the time was like something out of the Stone Age, had been for a while, the 1990 fluke aside, and the fan base was sick of it.  Mackovic was brought in to fix that, and he largely did. His weakness was defense. Ironically, by getting fired when he did, he left the program in much better shape than McWilliams. The bad taste of that 4-7 season in 97 disguised a roster in relatively decent shape, which helped Mack Brown's regime get a jump start in 98. McWilliams left a total rebuild in his wake.

Yep…. Ricky Williams staying for his Senior season was a huge boost for Mack.   

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Posted
Yep…. Ricky Williams staying for his Senior season was a huge boost for Mack.   

Probably the biggest recruiting victory for Mack. That season is probably what got him started kicking ass.
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Posted
2 hours ago, closetojumping said:

I am not sure what to make of what this thread has turned into in the aftermath of Mack Brown’s unceremonious firing in Chapel Hill, but it seems like there’s at least a vestige of a notion that this is also a North Carolina football thread? I don’t know. Anyway, on the chance that it is, I was amused to read that those idiots are trying to recruit Arthur Smith to the their next HC. I hope that happens. 

CDC is great, but for a machine as complicated as Texas athletics to truly hum, the support of the UT President and the BOR is paramount. The AD at Texas wields a lot of power, but it is not unlimited. An unsupportive and uninterested structure above the AD has served to our fandom’s detriment on multiple occasions. A hostile group above the AD at one point attempted to actively dismantle the program and did a great deal of damage in the process. 

Hartzell, Eltife and the current BOR working well in conjunction with CDC is a blessing and here’s hoping it continues as higher ups transition in the future. 

You make great points. Nebraska, CU, Miami, ND, hell, even Michigan and Ohio State, all benefitted from Texas talent while UT played with its food. It was brutal to read the top 100’s in the newspapers as a kid and see everyone leaving the state. 

While I am no great fan of Dodds, I do think you may be underselling his admin and business contributions as AD. Not taking away from you giving him some credit, but to build on it:

My understanding, from what I’ve read and been told by the elders, is that the dude revolutionized revenue generation within college athletic departments. The LHF was the first of its kind and became a model for others to follow.

Sponsorships and advertising in aggressive and new ways also drove change in the sport. This plus the LHF played major roles in making Texas the revenue juggernaut that it remains to this day.

His conversations with ND and conference commissioners helped plant the seeds for conference networks. I was at a gathering in which he spoke in the early 2000s and he talked of, at some point, the viability of going independent. The small group knew him well (I didn’t) and poo poo’d this take as silliness. He looked at us with a straight face and said that having our network channel changes all of that. This was years before the MWC Network or the Big 10 Network. It kind of haunts my memories of the past 20+ years to this day. 

Anyways, I’m not going to go into all of the obvious negatives that came along with those innovations, hopefully everyone can see and know them and realize that some of it is still with the department, but the guy does deserve credit as something of a pioneer, with all of the flaws that come with those types.  

See, this is good stuff. We need more of this around here.

Can you go in more depth on the bolded above?

I'm really interested to learn more about: 

1. Darrell Royal was only 52 years old when he stepped away. Did he leave on his own or was it a “please resign or we’ll fire you” 

2. Why was Fred Akers chosen to replace him? 
 

3. How the hell was Steve Patterson ever selected as AD?

4. Was hiring Charlie Strong a rogue move by the athletics department? (The BMDs didn’t support?) I know Red McCombs hated it.

Posted
5 minutes ago, closetojumping said:

I was not alive when DKR was the HC at Texas. The black bolded part is reference to the academics resenting the acclaim of the football program under DKR. When he left the HC role, there were several power struggles in the aftermath, part of which was the academic side fucking with athletic department constantly, trying to descope it, disrupt it, suffocate it, you name it. These idiots didn’t realize the importance of athletics for higher application demand and quality of applicants. May those people rot in hell. Others will have to provide better details. 

1) Dude left on his own. Burned out and hated the cheating.  

2) Others would have to explain it. 

3) Patterson allegedly had a great interview and claimed he’d happily do the dirty work of cleaning house and reducing costs. He reported into a bad/clueless regime above him. Anyone who followed the Rockets, NBA or Trailblazers knew he was going to be a complete fucking disaster. 

4) The academic regime hid behind the utilization of a search firm to hire someone and they wanted it to be a black guy that didn’t cost much. Charlie Strong checked all of the boxes. That may bother folks, doesn’t matter. That is the truth of how they looked at that role for UT at the time. The boosters were fatigued from the Saban/Jamail/Brown debacle and let it happen.

Stick around and read and follow the recruiting board and you’ll find a ton of stories about the school, programs, personalities, rivals, players, coaches, boosters, etc.  

regarding Charlie, I had read that Bill Powers was determined to hire an AA and that David Shaw said no.  Mack was allegedly pleased with the outcome.  

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