A Reminder of the #1 Reason Why Texas Fired Strong & Hired Herman
Tom Herman equals Season Ticket Sales for Texas Longhorns Football
Do you want to know why the University of Texas fired Charlie Strong as head football coach and hired Tom Herman?
Sure, there are several reasons. The Longhorns Football team’s record was not good, the Horns dipped in the second half each of the last two years, Strong’s defenses were poor despite his stellar reputation as a DC, and of course the loss to Kansas.
Plus, Herman is a rising star, he knows how to recruit in the state of Texas, and he led the University of Houston to two great seasons. (He even beat Oklahoma to start 2016.)
But, the real reason is season ticket sales. It’s especially the case in 2017 when the home schedule is pitiful. 2018 cannot get here soon enough when USC visits.
Simply put, Texas could not afford to retain Charlie Strong as head coach. The overall sentiment is fans wanted to see Strong succeed. But, it just wasn’t happening. And, the administration knew they had to make a change to bridge the gap to 2018.
Hi Friend, Tom Herman Here to Help Overlook the 2017 Schedule
This week, the Texas Athletics department sent an email to season ticket holders to renew their tickets for 2017. It’s likely that if Strong were still in charge, there would have been a dip in renewals and new buyers. With Tom Herman, though, there is a sense of optimism and fresh energy to drive revenue.
Recently, Texas’ home schedule has been a big problem in odd years, like 2017. This followed the Big 12 re-doing the schedule when TCU and West Virginia joined the conference in 2012.
In odd years, both Kansas schools come to Austin. Unless it’s Kansas Basketball playing at the Erwin Center, the general population of Horns fans are not interested. It also means the Thanksgiving Weekend game is Texas Tech, which has lately meant a blah battle just for bowl eligibility. Along those lines, the Red Raiders are the only school from the state of Texas to visit DKR Memorial Stadium in 2017.
The other conference home game in odd years is Oklahoma State, which simply means it’s the younger brother to Oklahoma. Finally, the non-conference schedule in 2017 includes Maryland and San Jose State. It’s not inspiring. And it sure does not match Notre Dame in 2016 and USC in 2018.
These are not knocks against the schools listed. It’s simply part of the Texas Football fan mindset wanting to see the biggest teams at DKR. Or, play other teams from the state of Texas in Austin.
Why Texas Needs the Big 12 to Expand
A big reason Texas needs the Big 12 to expand is to fix the conference schedule. This cannot continue with both Kansas schools coming to Austin and the Baylor and TCU games on the road in the same season.
Fortunately, there is a non-conference reprieve in 2019 when LSU visits Austin. But, the current 2021 and 2023 home non-conference opponents are Rice and UCF. Hopefully by then, Tom Herman will have the Horns program rocking to where it doesn’t matter who Texas is playing at DKR.
But, for three years when Charlie Strong was in charge, it did matter who was playing. When Notre Dame visited to kick off 2016, it was one of the best atmospheres in recent history. But, by the time the Thanksgiving Weekend game against TCU rolled around, Horns fans had lost interest. Most of that was because of the record, the loss to Kansas, and Strong’s shaky status. But, Longhorns fans want to see top-notch opponents in big-time games at DKR.
The mindset is part of a status symbol as the #2 most winningest program in college football history. The 2017 schedule simply does not cut it.
Next: Top 5 UT Football Games That Have Never Happened
For the long-term health of the athletics program and the university, Texas hopes that Tom Herman will rebuild the Horns to make the Longhorns Football team worth paying to see in 2017 and beyond. The administration just knew that Horns fans had lost faith in a good man like Charlie Strong to lead them to the top of college football again. And, drive season ticket sales.