Texas Football: 6 potential coaching replacements for Tom Herman

2) Texas football HC candidates

The longshot home run NFL candidate: Kyle Shanahan, San Francisco 49ers HC

Although the hiring of former San Francisco 49ers head coach Jim Harbaugh doesn’t look great for the Michigan Wolverines right now, if the Longhorns were to take to a similar path now, the result might not be as bad. The Longhorns most prominent alumni in the NFL among the coaching ranks is the 49ers head coach and the reigning NFC Champion Kyle Shanahan.

Even though he’s not likely to take the 49ers to a Super Bowl this year, the coaching job that Shanahan pulled off so far is a pretty amazing feat. He just took the 49ers to upset Kyler Murray and the Arizona Cardinals on Nov. 29 to keep his team in playoff contention. The 49ers have 20 players on injured reserve, so the fact that they’re still remaining competitive in the NFC West is a very awesome feat.

Shanahan is a former Texas walk-on wide receiver, special teams unit regular, from the early 2000’s. He didn’t do much production wise during his time playing for the Longhorns in college, but he’s a great coach. The 40-year-old Shanahan is a very bright offensive mind, and a true shining star as a head coach.

The wonders that Shanahan could do for the Longhorns likely both on the field and on the recruiting trail would be great for the program. The problem is that getting Shanahan to the Forty Acres would likely take a combination of immensely deep pocket books and some tension brewing with the 49ers. Both would be difficult for Texas right now (considering it’s a pandemic budget year).