Texas football coach Mack Brown isn't exactly unheralded, and he certainly isn't underpaid. However, he still might be underappreciated.
Consider these achievements from his 11 seasons leading the Longhorns:
-- A 115-26 record, which averages out to 10.5 wins and 2.4 losses per year.
-- At least nine victories each season, highlighted by 10 or more wins each of the last eight years and two losses or fewer in five of those eight seasons.
-- An 8-3 record in bowl games, featuring the current run of five consecutive wins -- three of them in Bowl Championship Series games.
-- A 3-1 record the last four seasons against bitter Red River rival Oklahoma, a program that's among the nation's best.
-- A 38-0 record against Big 12 Conference opponents Baylor, Iowa State, Kansas, Missouri and Oklahoma State. That's especially impressive when you take into account that Texas plays South Division opponents Baylor and Oklahoma State every year and that Kansas, Missouri and Oklahoma State all have been very competitive during the last several seasons.
-- A 3-0 record in road games against Nebraska, which long has been known for its dominance in Lincoln.
-- A 13-0 record in 2005 for Texas' first national championship since 1970, capped by the epic 41-38 victory over top-ranked Southern California in what many consider the best game in college football history.
That's quite an impressive resume, to be sure. However, Brown has plenty of detractors and has had them throughout his time in Austin. Some of their complaints might be unfair, but some of them are valid.
You could point to the fact that he's 5-6 against Oklahoma, including an ugly 0-5 stretch from 2000-04 during which Bob Stoops' Sooners outscored (or embarrassed, if you prefer) Texas by a combined 189-54.
You could point to the fact that he's taken the Longhorns to the Big 12 championship game only three times and won just once.
You could point to the fact that he's 3-3 against Texas Tech in Lubbock, found a way to lose to Dennis Franchione's less-than-great Texas A&M teams in 2006 and '07, and has struggled to a 2-4 mark against Kansas State, including a ghastly 41-21 home defeat two years ago.
You could point to the fact that he's guided Texas to more Holiday Bowls (four) -- please don't get me wrong; the Holiday historically is one of the best bowls and I've been to three of them -- than BCS bowls (three).
The ironic thing there is that Brown's Longhorns are 3-0 in BCS bowls, winning back-to-back Rose Bowls following the 2004 and '05 seasons and last season's Fiesta, and only 2-2 in the Holiday. San Diego's a great place to visit (and to live in, for that matter), but don't blame Texas fans if they'd rather be in Pasadena (California, not Texas), New Orleans, Miami or Glendale come the first week of January.
All in all, the Brown era at UT could best be described as highly and consistently successful, with a few disappointments thrown in.
As for Brown as a program leader, he's really about as good as it gets.
He's a great recruiter who annually attracts the lion's share of the best talent in the state with the country's best high school football. He's savvy enough to go out of his way to make high school coaches feel special, and he reaps the dividends on national signing day each February.
He went from fan favorite Major Applewhite at quarterback to blue-chip golden boy Chris Simms, then from the indomitable Vince Young to the impossible-not-to-like Colt McCoy.
By the way, both Young and McCoy were Heisman Trophy runners-up as redshirt juniors after producing seasons that likely would have won the Heisman in almost any other year. Fear not when McCoy departs after the 2009 season; big-time incoming freshman Garrett Gilbert will be ready to put his stamp on the Longhorns.
Brown always puts together a strong coaching staff and allows his coaches to coach. Offensive coordinator Greg Davis has been with him since the beginning at Texas, and the hiring of fiery defensive coordinator Will Muschamp -- who will become the Longhorns' head coach when Brown's ready to retire -- was brilliant.
Brown's a charismatic figure who's comfortable dealing with the intense media scrutiny that comes with overseeing one of the nation's elite programs. On a personal note, I appreciate the fact that when I've asked him a question in a packed postgame news conference, he's always looked me in the eye and given me a straight, thoughtful answer.
And he makes sure to tout Texas' proud history and traditions, keeping legendary former coach Darrell Royal a visible figure and inviting ex-Longhorns to remain close to the program.
Critics of Brown say he's too corporate, too polished, too media-conscious, too corny. Funny, critics say a lot of the same things about North Carolina basketball coach Roy Williams, and he's done pretty well for himself.
Is Mack Brown the very best college football coach in the country? Probably not. It might be Florida's Urban Meyer, USC's Pete Carroll, Ohio State's Jim Tressel, Oklahoma's Stoops or Louisiana State's Les Miles.
But Brown definitely is in the discussion, and in my opinion only Meyer and Carroll have a slight edge on him because they've produced multiple national championships during this decade.
Note to Texas fans: You don't have to love everything about Mack Brown, but you should appreciate the overall job he's done in restoring Texas to its place among the country's top five college football programs.
And you're going to miss him when he's gone.
Consider these achievements from his 11 seasons leading the Longhorns:
-- A 115-26 record, which averages out to 10.5 wins and 2.4 losses per year.
-- At least nine victories each season, highlighted by 10 or more wins each of the last eight years and two losses or fewer in five of those eight seasons.
-- An 8-3 record in bowl games, featuring the current run of five consecutive wins -- three of them in Bowl Championship Series games.
-- A 3-1 record the last four seasons against bitter Red River rival Oklahoma, a program that's among the nation's best.
-- A 38-0 record against Big 12 Conference opponents Baylor, Iowa State, Kansas, Missouri and Oklahoma State. That's especially impressive when you take into account that Texas plays South Division opponents Baylor and Oklahoma State every year and that Kansas, Missouri and Oklahoma State all have been very competitive during the last several seasons.
-- A 3-0 record in road games against Nebraska, which long has been known for its dominance in Lincoln.
-- A 13-0 record in 2005 for Texas' first national championship since 1970, capped by the epic 41-38 victory over top-ranked Southern California in what many consider the best game in college football history.
That's quite an impressive resume, to be sure. However, Brown has plenty of detractors and has had them throughout his time in Austin. Some of their complaints might be unfair, but some of them are valid.
You could point to the fact that he's 5-6 against Oklahoma, including an ugly 0-5 stretch from 2000-04 during which Bob Stoops' Sooners outscored (or embarrassed, if you prefer) Texas by a combined 189-54.
You could point to the fact that he's taken the Longhorns to the Big 12 championship game only three times and won just once.
You could point to the fact that he's 3-3 against Texas Tech in Lubbock, found a way to lose to Dennis Franchione's less-than-great Texas A&M teams in 2006 and '07, and has struggled to a 2-4 mark against Kansas State, including a ghastly 41-21 home defeat two years ago.
You could point to the fact that he's guided Texas to more Holiday Bowls (four) -- please don't get me wrong; the Holiday historically is one of the best bowls and I've been to three of them -- than BCS bowls (three).
The ironic thing there is that Brown's Longhorns are 3-0 in BCS bowls, winning back-to-back Rose Bowls following the 2004 and '05 seasons and last season's Fiesta, and only 2-2 in the Holiday. San Diego's a great place to visit (and to live in, for that matter), but don't blame Texas fans if they'd rather be in Pasadena (California, not Texas), New Orleans, Miami or Glendale come the first week of January.
All in all, the Brown era at UT could best be described as highly and consistently successful, with a few disappointments thrown in.
As for Brown as a program leader, he's really about as good as it gets.
He's a great recruiter who annually attracts the lion's share of the best talent in the state with the country's best high school football. He's savvy enough to go out of his way to make high school coaches feel special, and he reaps the dividends on national signing day each February.
He went from fan favorite Major Applewhite at quarterback to blue-chip golden boy Chris Simms, then from the indomitable Vince Young to the impossible-not-to-like Colt McCoy.
By the way, both Young and McCoy were Heisman Trophy runners-up as redshirt juniors after producing seasons that likely would have won the Heisman in almost any other year. Fear not when McCoy departs after the 2009 season; big-time incoming freshman Garrett Gilbert will be ready to put his stamp on the Longhorns.
Brown always puts together a strong coaching staff and allows his coaches to coach. Offensive coordinator Greg Davis has been with him since the beginning at Texas, and the hiring of fiery defensive coordinator Will Muschamp -- who will become the Longhorns' head coach when Brown's ready to retire -- was brilliant.
Brown's a charismatic figure who's comfortable dealing with the intense media scrutiny that comes with overseeing one of the nation's elite programs. On a personal note, I appreciate the fact that when I've asked him a question in a packed postgame news conference, he's always looked me in the eye and given me a straight, thoughtful answer.
And he makes sure to tout Texas' proud history and traditions, keeping legendary former coach Darrell Royal a visible figure and inviting ex-Longhorns to remain close to the program.
Critics of Brown say he's too corporate, too polished, too media-conscious, too corny. Funny, critics say a lot of the same things about North Carolina basketball coach Roy Williams, and he's done pretty well for himself.
Is Mack Brown the very best college football coach in the country? Probably not. It might be Florida's Urban Meyer, USC's Pete Carroll, Ohio State's Jim Tressel, Oklahoma's Stoops or Louisiana State's Les Miles.
But Brown definitely is in the discussion, and in my opinion only Meyer and Carroll have a slight edge on him because they've produced multiple national championships during this decade.
Note to Texas fans: You don't have to love everything about Mack Brown, but you should appreciate the overall job he's done in restoring Texas to its place among the country's top five college football programs.
And you're going to miss him when he's gone.
This one is my favorite so far. Good job!
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