In a move that set the program back for multiple years after, Texas’ decision to hire former Louisville head coach Charlie Strong is still widely regarded as one of the worst hires of all time.
After finding success at Louisville, Strong took the head coaching job in Austin to replace the legendary Mack Brown. To say it did not go well would be a huge understatement.
Strong was unable to lead Texas to a winning record once, and was fired after just three seasons which of course included what was at one point the most embarrassing loss of them all, losing to Kansas.
His struggles at Texas led to him being included on 247Sports‘ 13 worst hires of the past decade.
Strong came in at the No. 4 spot trailing only Willie Taggart (FSU), Les Miles (Kansas), and Chad Morris (Arkansas). Here is what they said about Strong’s tenure.
Strong takes most of the blame for Texas’ modern woes. He entered a tough situation when he took the job in Austin by replacing Mack Brown. In 15 years with the Longhorns, Brown won a national title and two Big 12 championships, amassing a total record of 158-48. Strong, meanwhile, enjoyed an incredibly successful four years at Louisville, winning 23 games from 2012-13. So it is a bit of a head-scratcher that, in three years with Texas, Strong failed to have a single winning season. Since Strong was hired, Texas has been mired in mediocrity.
It doesn’t help that Texas followed up Strong’s hiring with the very average hiring of Tom Herman, who found more success, but was unable to lift the program to where it is expected to be.
Now, it is up to Steve Sarkisian to break this coaching curse that was started with the hiring of Strong.