College football: Will Texas keep Will Muschamp?
If Georgia fires football coach Mark Richt and comes hard after Texas defensive coordinator Will Muschamp, would the Longhorns let him go? Maybe not.
A Texas source said over the weekend that UT might encourage Mack Brown to retire, that the ‘Horns might be ready to commence with the Muschamp era. Not because of any dissatisfaction of Brown, but because of a belief in Muschamp. That’s the extent of Texas’ devotion to Muschamp, who is in his third year as the UT defensive coordinator and has been designated Brown’s successor.
I think that’s silly, of course. Muschamp seems like an excellent head coaching candidate and obviously is a superb coordinator. But Brown has restored Texas football to the status it hasn’t reached since the 1960s. And it’s not like UT is staggering; the Longhorns played for the national championship this calendar year and had Alabama on its heels in the second half despite the ‘Horns’ early-game loss of quarterback Colt McCoy.
In this photograph taken on Wednesday, Aug. 12, 2009, Texas head football coach Mack Brown, left, talks with defensive coordinator Will Muschamp, right, during an evening NCAA college football practice in Austin, Texas. (AP Photo/Harry Cabluck)
Despite a 3-2 start in 2010, Brown hasn’t lost his touch. He’s still running a big-time program producing big-time success with a bright future. Ending the Brown era to get to the Muschamp era makes no sense.
But it would make perfect sense for Muschamp to go to Georgia job, which is a great job and a great fit for Muschamp. Muschamp, 39, grew up in Rome, Ga., and was a walkon safety at Georgia before entering coaching. Muschamp was a successful defensive coordinator at LSU and Auburn, so his SEC roots run deep.
If Muschamp wants the Texas job, he still could take the Georgia job. Go to Georgia, do well and Texas will come calling when Brown decides to quit. Muschamp is incredibly popular in Texas, which is why some think he should be elevated at Brown’s expense.
Muschamp could be a candidate at LSU, too, if the Tigers cut loose Les Miles. But as much as Miles exasperates LSU, he’s winning too much to consider a change. The Bengals are 5-0 overall, 3-0 in the SEC, despite a series of close calls.
So Georgia seems the likely school to come calling for Muschamp in 2010. Georgia fell to 1-4 with a loss at Colorado, and suddenly Richt’s hold on the job seems perilous. From 2002 through 2008, Georgia averaged 10.6 wins a season. But the Bulldogs slipped to 8-5 last season and now are in free fall. You know how SEC schools are.
Every football team’s fan base has the patience of a 2-month-old, but most universities don’t succumb to such nonsense. In the SEC, they do. So Richt, one of the nation’s better coaches, might be employed elsewhere next season.
-------------Berry Tramel can be heard Monday through Friday from 4:40-5:20 p.m. on The Sports Animal radio network, including AM-640 and FM-98.1. You can e-mail him here and follow him on Twitter @BerryTramel. Visit Berry's website here.
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RYDER CUP AND OTHER MATTERS: ARE WE ASHAMED OF OUR COLORS? When you leave your colors at home, what do you play for? Just like our universities and high schools, who are intertwining another color and forgetting that the original colors were important to those who built and attended these schools many years ago. I served this country twice and I am very proud of the RED,WHITE AND BLUE! AND GET OUT OF THE WAY AND LET MAJOR DO THE HIRING AND FIRING!
[...] right I said 4), Texas may be forcing Mack Brown out the door on order to keep Will Muschamp. College football: Will Texas keep Will Muschamp? | Berry Tramel's Blog Not much of a chance that happens. MB leaves on his own terms whenever he [...]
Is Deloss Dodds still the athletic director & does his Royal Highness (Darrell Royal) still have his finger in the pie….if so, anything could happen at UT…..remember Dodd’s getting rid of one of TU’s best basketball coaches, Abe Lemmons…After Willie Nelson has had a few drags on his pot, he calls Royal to give him advice….If the GA job comes open and if Muschamp were offered the job, he’d be a fool not to take it….
[...] favorite Oklahoma Newsman Berry Tramel has come forward saying he has ‘sources’. A Texas source said over the weekend that UT might encourage Mack Brown to retire, that the [...]
If he goes, he goes. I won’t lose a second of sleep. It’s not like Texas won’t go out and find the next big thing at Defensive Coordinator and pay the money necessary to bring him in. Muschamp is an excellent coach, but he’s no Mack Brown and trust me, no one is going to tell Mack to retire. He will retire when he wants to.
Other than Alabama–I don’t see an world beaters in the SEC right now. Florida is regressing, LSU is okay, Auburn is better with Newton, we’ll find out about South Carolina next game, Arkansas is a nice team with Mallet. Georgia and Tennesse are shadows of their former selves. Kentucky, Vandy and Ole Miss and Miss State are okay. But I would pose this question–if you excluded Alabama from the SEC mix this season–which of the following SEC teams do you think could beat Ohio State, Oregon or evn Boise for that matter in our mythical national championship game?
I would say none. Even in the SEC…the fangs of parity and mediocrity have shown themselves.OU would fit right in there with LSU, Arkansas, Auburn and Florida.
Why hasn’t some school hired Greg Davis. We would probably have Nat’l Championships since Muschamp came on. One of the best minds in college football is being wasted –Major. If Davis was competent , he would have been hired. No quick hitters! Running backs getting the ball 7 yards deep. No lineman can hold a block that long. Even Rickey couldn’t do that. And blame it on the backs–You have the best backsin the country. What a waste!
Wow, ridiculous comments from some of you. You want Brown out? The second best coach in the history of Texas football. You have got to be kidding! He will have his name on whatever part of that stadium is still unnamed some day. Muschamp has never been a head coach. Being a coordinator and being a head coach are two very different jobs. Big time programs don’t hire first time head coaches. Did Florida? Alabama? Notre Dame? (oh ya, ND did… how did that turn out?). If Muschamp stays, great. If he doesn’t its okay. 50/50 he is a great head coach… 5% chance he wins more national championships than Mac. Oh ya, and the DKR comment is just ridiculous. You obviously don’t have any idea what you are talking about. No DKR does not have his finger in the pie, whatever that means.
Remember this.
Some boosters at OU wanted to get rid of Switzer to bring in Gibbs.
How did that turn out?
Careful what you wish for.
[...] heard of collateral damage before, but this takes the cake. Berry Tramel of The Oklahoman speculates that Georgia’s ongoing meltdown might claim not only Mark Richt’s job, but Mack [...]
[...] Tramel’s blog: A Texas source said over the weekend that UT might encourage Mack Brown to retire, that the [...]
[...] to Georgia or LSU? College football: Will Texas keep Will Muschamp? | Berry Tramel's Blog Reply With [...]
[...] At least according to Berry Tramel at The Oklahoman – http://blog.newsok.com/berrytramel/2010/10/05/college-football-will-texas-keep-will-muschamp/ [...]
[...] Muschamp heading to Athens to take over if Mark Richt is indeed fired at the end of the season. According to Berry Tramel a columnist with The Daily Oklahoman, that Texas may be in the process of pushing head coach [...]
No way!!! Mack Brown has earned the right to retire when he decides he does not want to coach.He took over a 4-7 program,turned it around and won a National Championship.Maybe Ou would like him to leave so they could get back recruiting the top Texas talent like they did before Mack arrived.Does anyone remember those days?
[...] Tramel of the Daily Oklahoman said a person close to the Texas program indicated the school could force out Mack Brown at the end of the season to make way for coach-in-waiting Will [...]
[...] know rumors are flying about that the Texas Longhorns could let Mack Brown go to start the Will Muschamp era in Austin, thats if Mark Richt gets fired at Georgia. The concept [...]
I don’t seem to recall the time period when UT had Bama on their heels during the NC game. Must have been a video game. As I recall Bama called off the dogs and UT scored a touchdown. Hardly ‘on their heels’.
[...] heard of collateral damage before, but this takes the cake. Berry Tramel of The Oklahoman speculates that Georgia’s ongoing meltdown might claim not only Mark Richt’s job, but Mack [...]
Root of most of our problems for many many years now is Greg Davis. Booting Mack may be the only way to dump Davis. Lean on Mack to get rid of that east west offensive idiot.
Oh how things never change. I’ve been around long enough to remember Darrell Royal “retiring” because of fans/boosters whining about his last season, which was 6/6,or 5/5, if I recall. (With an injured Earl Campbell).
Then Fred Akers takes over what is essentially a DKR-built team, and plays for a NC (losing to ND). He has a few more years on the cusp, which of coarse isn’t good enough for the fan base, and pesters him until he quits too.
After that, the program goes off the edge of a cliff to mediocrity from the mid-80′s to the late-90′s when they finally hire Mack.
Point is, all programs, even the best ones, go through rough times. I say, be grateful he’s here and don’t worry. He’s right the ship, even if it veers off course every once in a while.
Ridiculous speculations. Mack Brown will retire when he gets ready. Nothing changes that. Will will wait to be headcoach at Texas when that happens. He will not leave for Georgia or anywhere else. He loves Austin and so does his family. Nothing has changed. Texas will have a record like other schools have every year so what? The bottom has not fallen out. All hell has not broken loose. Those who believe what someone prints as truth rather than speculation to sell newspapers is just plain foolish.
Trammel is a dim-wit.
What you just read proves that.
What’s next? Stoops to Texas when Mack is forced to retire?
As I said: Dim-wit.
If you look at how Texas is playing TEXAS SHOULD GO OUT AND FIND A REAL Defensive Co-ordintor, and a better Coach with today’s knowledge of coaching, Rick Nuehisel of Ucla knew all along he was superior to these guys when it came to coaching, he knew Texas would be easy to beat and the Texas players were poorly Coached. That’s why he wanted them on his schedule. The people in Texas just don’t know how to pick Coaches,
The prob is Gred Davis. Mac Brown is welcome to return. It’s just that he needs to take his friend with him when he leaves. Hook’em Horns!!
[...] heard of collateral damage before, but this takes the cake. Berry Tramel of The Oklahoman speculates that Georgia’s ongoing meltdown might claim not only Mark Richt’s job, but Mack [...]
[...] heard of collateral damage before, but this takes the cake. Berry Tramel of The Oklahoman speculates that Georgia’s ongoing meltdown might claim not only Mark Richt’s job, but Mack [...]
Please don’t get rid of Mack. It would be a disaster for OU. If Mack goes then our favorite coach, Greg Davis, will certainly follow.
Don’t do that to us Texas. Keep Greg forever. PLEASE!
Boomer Sooner
Mack and Texas are still King. Take your eyes off the defensive coord and look on the other side of the ball (hint: up in the booth, Mack’s friend).
till you have a good set up for that ads, we writing in this post since you will see this when you are grading comments, Keep up the good function Andrei
I would love to see UT force Brown to retire, they need a few years of mediocrity to bring them back to earth.