Following the loss to Iowa State at home on senior day, Tom Herman had to answer a lot of questions about his future at the University of Texas. His response was simply to focus on what he can control. He made a similar comment following the Longhorns’ 69-31 victory over Kansas State.
“I tell our team all the time, ‘control what you can control’ and I would be a hypocrite if I didn’t do the same,” Herman stated after the game.
The Longhorns brass has yet to make a decision on the future of the head coach up to this point. Every report stating that Texas has their sites set on Urban Meyer as the next head coach. Did Herman do enough with this victory to quiet the rumors? Doubtful and as Dan Wolken of USA TODAY Sports writes, this is exactly why they need to move on.
[lawrence-related id=28155,25805]
After a week of answering questions about why he should remain the coach at Texas and seeing report after report about his boss pursuing his potential replacement, Tom Herman was once again an underdog when the Longhorns stepped onto the field Saturday against Kansas State.
Unfortunately for Texas, it’s the only mode that seems to work for him.
If we’ve learned anything about Herman during four seasons at Texas and two prior to that at Houston, it’s that his teams play their best football when there’s a point to prove, when they believe they’ve been counted out. So it was once again Saturday, amid Texas athletics director Chris Del Conte’s rather open pursuit of Urban Meyer, that the Longhorns stepped up for a 69-31 win over Kansas State.
Wolken brings up a solid point with his analysis, why did it take Herman having his back against the wall to provide one of the most dominating performances of the season? Why does it take a demoralizing loss against Iowa State when your team had a shot at the Big 12 Championship game if you won out to show up?
That Texas dug deep into its emotional well coming off a dispiriting loss to Iowa State to put forth its most dominant performance of the season wasn’t a surprising. It’s what Herman’s teams do.
Which is exactly the problem, isn’t it?
The reason Texas’ win Saturday changes nothing, the reason why it’s still Del Conte’s duty to try and coax one of the most successful college coaches of all time out of the broadcast booth, is that being a scrappy team that knows how to get off the mat and play its best football impresses absolutely nobody at Texas.
Wolken goes on to discuss the antics of Tom Herman over his time at Texas where he showcased his immaturity. It appears that no one is in the corner of Herman, the real question being is Chris Del Conte?
[listicle id=28431]