......... Mack, Good-Bye & Good Luck

[ElTexan]

Mack Brown,

Thank you for your service at my beloved University of Texas. You ran a clean, prosperous program all us Longhorn faithful are proud of.

I started at UT in the early 90's, and I remember the lackadaisical fan base of that era. Hardly anyone wore burnt orange [And we have a unique, iconic color in cfb], and no one showed up on time for the game... much less stayed until the end to sing The Eyes of Texas. You, not anyone else, changed all that. I thank you.

Quickly, you turned our program around. Through your recruiting and coaching strategy [we'll get to that later], we stopped losing to teams that we shouldn't lose to, and our win column grew. 9-wins per season in the first two years and 10+-win seasons for several years after is quite an accomplishment.

My frustration first started when you benched the Big 12 Rookie of the Year, Major Applewhite, for the turncoat, Chris Simms. Every single fan disagreed with your decision. I know why you did it. You had a honeymoon period, and you wanted to use it... to use three or four years to build up a program of your own recruits. You didn't know that you'd inherit one of the gutsiest players in CFB history who would take you to the Big 12 Championship in only your second year as coach. Still, the fact that you had to call a press conference so that the back-up quarterback, Applewhite, could address the media, visibly gulp down anger, and feign support for your program should have been a clue to you.

As for your coaching strategy, this was also a source of frustration. You, along with Coach Greg Davis, devised a scheme that I would describe as the "9-win strategy" or the "George Strait" offense: You wanted to be 80% good 100% percent of the time... with occasional flashes of brilliance. Now, this did ensure that we wouldn't make terrible mistakes or play outside of our abilities, thus ensuring 9-wins and a chance to succeed. But what it also did was prevent us from being phenomenal many times. Consequently, we lost way too many games to good teams [OU] and to teams that had a very good day [KSU, etc]. I think your strategy is good for a 'mid' to 'good' tier team, but not an elite tier team like Texas. I think that after initial success, you really should have switched to a system where more like the pros: trying to get 95% to 100% out of your elites as mush as you could.

I truly believe that if it wasn't for the greatest CFB player to ever take the field, Vince Young, and the winningest, most accurate, most prolific QB to ever take the field, Colt McCoy, Texas using your strategy would be just another Oregon over the last decade and a half, good but never great. VY, who you admitted to quitting coaching and just let be, and Colt, who had about 19 fouth-quarter comebacks, really saved you from mediocrity.

In the end, while I truly believe that over your tenure you played in the most difficult top to bottom conference, you didn't enough times achieve the goal that should be every team's goal each year: winning your conference.

Thank you for getting our team back from true mediocrity. Thank you for upping our sales and revenue and stadium. Thank you for entrenching us as a top recruit destination. Thank you for your campaign of 'Come Early, Be Loud, Stay Late, Wear Orange,' which really did make a helluva difference.

It's time for Texas to move on.

 

[4down20]

 

[ChrisperJ10]

Followed the Horns since I moved to Austin when I was nine. Went through the Chris Simms, Chance Mock, Garrett Gilbert Eras. Going to Miss you Mack...

But...

Make sure you thank Major Applewhite, Vincent Young, and Colt McCoy.

Otherwise you'd be in the same class as Beamer, Fulmer, and Richt.

Good luck on your figure endeavors.

 

[BTHOtu]

In his 13 years of coaching in the Texas-Texas A&M rivalry, head coach Mack Brown’s favorite memory is not a big win. Instead, it’s a moment. And his least favorite memory has almost nothing to do with the game itself.
That alone should be proof that this Thanksgiving battle was always bigger than the game.


“The best memory was watching Ricky Williams break the rushing record in 1998,” Brown said. “Tony Dorsett on the sidelines, Earl Campbell was there, [former Aggies] John David Crow and Gene Stallings were there."

His most painful memory came a year later, when Texas A&M lost 12 students in the tragic collapse of the bonfire, a ceremonial construction in anticipation of the Texas game.


“As a parent, I would never want to bury a child,” he said. “It was one of the worst games of my life.”


The week of the bonfire accident, the game took a side-seat. Brown helped create a blood drive to aid those injured. During the game, the Longhorn band dedicated its performance to the Aggies.


Brown calls the game the “only show in town.”

Good Luck Mack. It's sad to see you go under these circumstances. You've been a worthy opponent and a class act.

 

[MarkOU]

Mack won the lottery once as a coach when he landed Vince Young. Colt McCoy was just pure luck.

Take away colt and vince years and Mack is 89-38 5-3 in bowls.

Still not to bad.

The search for the next coach at Texas will be intriguing. They need to make a big splash to replace Mack, who is being forced out 9 wins shy of tieing DKR's record.

 

[Inquisitor95]

Compared to Fred Akers, David McWilliams, and John Mackovic, Mack Brown is a saint.

Sad to see him go out this way.

 

[BTHOtu]

Compared to Fred Akers, David McWilliams, and John Mackovic, Mack Brown is a saint.

Sad to see him go out this way.

Actually, those were our favorite coaches.

 

[Lance Armstrong]

Dont ever compare Greg Davis to George Strait, EVER

 

[Phantom]

Dont ever compare Greg Davis to George Strait, EVER

Lmao!

 

[Phantom]

In his 13 years of coaching in the Texas-Texas A&M rivalry, head coach Mack Brown’s favorite memory is not a big win. Instead, it’s a moment. And his least favorite memory has almost nothing to do with the game itself.
That alone should be proof that this Thanksgiving battle was always bigger than the game.


“The best memory was watching Ricky Williams break the rushing record in 1998,” Brown said. “Tony Dorsett on the sidelines, Earl Campbell was there, [former Aggies] John David Crow and Gene Stallings were there."

His most painful memory came a year later, when Texas A&M lost 12 students in the tragic collapse of the bonfire, a ceremonial construction in anticipation of the Texas game.


“As a parent, I would never want to bury a child,” he said. “It was one of the worst games of my life.”


The week of the bonfire accident, the game took a side-seat. Brown helped create a blood drive to aid those injured. During the game, the Longhorn band dedicated its performance to the Aggies.


Brown calls the game the “only show in town.”

Good Luck Mack. It's sad to see you go under these circumstances. You've been a worthy opponent and a class act.

Great post. Texas and ATM fans go back and forth on this board, but this is proof that we both have the utmost respect for each other. It may get heated sometimes, but if you don't miss the traditions, the game, memories, and most importantly the respect for one another, you aren't a true Longhorn or Aggie.

 

[MarkOU]

Dont ever compare Greg Davis to George Strait, EVER

Holy rare sighting batman.

 

[ElTexan]

Dont ever compare Greg Davis to George Strait, EVER

Sorry. It is harsh. But if you live in Austin and are privy to truly great honky tonk music, you know George Strait is a "9 win" artist. Sad but true.

 

[Blackshirt]

This thread is so fucking gay.

 

[ChrisperJ10]

This thread is so fucking gay.

Don't you Huskers run backwards through a corn field on your spare time?

 

[ElTexan]

This thread is so fucking gay.

If I were a Husker from the Big 12 era, I'd be mad at a Mack Brown thread, too, I'm sure.

 

[ElTexan]

Adios.