Off with their heads? Why?
As the College Football is heating up and the BCS standings have FINALLY come out, many fans are realizing exactly what their team is made of this season. Some fans have been pleasantly surprised by undefeated records (Missouri, Michigan State), while others are disappointed by another season of not living up to high hopes (Texas A&M, Oregon State). While those things are common every year, what is not common is seeing two teams like Texas and Florida fall completely out of the top 25 at some point in the season. It is a strange sight to see the Horns get blown out at home by UCLA and see the Gators get shutdown 10-7 at home by the boys from StarkVegas (Miss. State plays in Starkville). Though all this is extremely unsettling, the fact that fans are calling for the heads of Mack Brown and Urban Meyer is a little premature. One of these guys might be on his way out already anyway (and it is probably time), but calling for them to be fired RIGHT NOW is ridiculous.
Mack Brown has been a fixture on the Texas sidelines since 1998 and all he has done is win Big 12 Championships and a National Title. Has he had a recent problem with players getting in trouble off the field? Sure. Does he turn his head the other way when certain star defensive players drive their car into someone’s apartment (see Sergio Kindle)? Yes. But more that anything else, Mack is a master recruiter and gets his guys to play for him. This year has been a little different for Mr. Brown. Their inability to run the ball has caused major problems and the fact that they have named a damn “coach-in-waiting” doesn’t help things. Will Muschamp will be the next coach in Austin, but why the hell do we need a “coach-in-waiting”? All this does is give people a reason to call for Mack to be fired. Greg Davis and his damn play calling have taken a lot of heat so far this season and deservedly so. Why are you running the ball all the time when OBVIOUSLY your QB can run the ball himself and throw it down the field. Texas can run the ball next year when Malcolm Brown comes to Austin. At the end of the day, Mack Brown is more of a great recruiter than Head Coach, but look at what he has done. Just because he loses two games in a row, he needs to be fired? So what do you do now that he led his team into Lincoln and they beat up a #5 ranked Nebraska team? Do you fire Mack because Texas fans expect title or bust? It is no secret that I am not a huge Texas fan, but why are the expectations so high EVERY year. Texas is not a National Title contender every year. Mack Brown maybe should retire due to the fact that maybe it is time, but he damn sure should not be fired.
Urban Meyer has a completely different situation down in Gainesville. GatorNation is freaking out right now because the Gators have lost 3 games for the first time since 1988. Yes that is a long time and makes fans VERY upset, lets re-think this. This guy has won 2 National Championships in 5 years at Florida and just lost quite possibly the BEST college football player EVER in Tim Tebow. So he has a down year after that and he needs to be fired? This situation is similar to Texas in that Florida also has offensive play calling problems. John Brantley is not an option QB yet they continue to try. He needs to drop back and throw the ball, but doesn’t do it enough. The defense is trying to do their part, but they are breaking down late when they need to come through. Urban Meyer needs to absolutely take flack for this team’s lack of execution, but to fire him is senseless.
Too many times, coaches get fired quickly after a rough season. If that was the case, why isn’t Rich Rodriguez out of Michigan already? Why is Mike Sherman still at Texas A&M? Mack and Urban are great coaches who have had national title appearances in the last two seasons? These guys are going through major losses at the QB position and their team is trying to find their identity. If you want to call for someone’s head, call for Greg Davis and Steve Addazio’s heads. Those two Offensive Coordinators have made terrible play calls during the season and need to figure it out soon. If they don’t, well they will be looking for new jobs and hearing people in Austin and Gainesville saying “You played yourself”.
