AUSTIN, TX - OCTOBER 21: Head coach Tom Herman of the Texas Longhorns walks into the stadium prior to the game against the Oklahoma State Cowboys at Darrell K Royal-Texas Memorial Stadium on October 21, 2017 in Austin, Texas. (Photo by Tim Warner/Getty Images)In a year where most schools are probably set to hold serve on making major coaching moves until next year, with the financial troubles brought on by COVID-19. If there is a program that has the resources to make a big change, it is probably Texas football. According to a new report, the school is “prepared to move on” from Tom Herman this year.
Herman, the former head coach at Houston and offensive coordinator for Ohio State’s national championship team under Urban Meyer, seemed like a slam dunk at the time. Texas beat out LSU to bring him in, after a highly successful run with the Cougars, going 22-4 in two years, including a 13-1 record with a Peach Bowl win in 2015.
Texas hasn’t been bad under Herman, per say. The Longhorns are better than they were for the late Mack Brown years, and through Charlie Strong’s tenure. Last year’s middling 8-5 season sapped a lot of the momentum from the 10-win, Sugar Bowl victory year in 2018, and this season looks to be more of the same with the Longhorns at 5-3.
Bruce Feldman of The Athletic/FOX Sports believes the school is “prepared to move on” from Tom Herman this year if need be. According to USA Today‘s coaching salary database, Herman will be owed over $15 million per his buyout, as of Dec. 1. Of course, we saw South Carolina, a school with fewer resources than the behemoth Texas athletic department, fired Will Muschamp already, with a buyout of around $13 million. There may be more willingness by schools to make moves like this if they believe that it will be a prudent financial move in the long run, especially if programs are able to have full stadiums again next year.
#Texas brass is prepared to move on from Tom Herman, we’re told. Where do the Longhorns turn to? Is Urban Meyer a real option for UT? Here’s our story on that and much more: https://t.co/fnN91YMPfv
— Bruce Feldman (@BruceFeldmanCFB) December 2, 2020
As Feldman teases in the tweet, Urban Meyer is the “wish candidate” for the school. The former coach quickly turned Florida and Ohio State into national championship winners. It isn’t a stretch to say that he could do the same at Texas football, especially given his recruiting acumen in the area.
Feldman works with Meyer on FOX Sports’ Big Noon Kickoff pregame show, and does think that Meyer is deeply invested in his broadcast career, and that it is no guarantee that he’ll want to return to the sideline.
