It has been a great year to be a Texas Longhorn football fan....actually, more like a great decade. Since Mack Brown arrived as head coach, UT football has risen to the upper echelon of college football, where it rightly belongs. I am a huge fan, and I know that I must enjoy where we are at now, as it is unheard of to have such a good run.When I was in school, I was a member of the Longhorn Hellraisers, and was a big fan, but I'm ashamed to say that I skipped a couple of games in 1997, which was John Mackovic's last year as head coach, and when we weren't all that good. Skipped, as in not even watching the games on TV.
Yes, that was bad. It just seemed like Texas had slipped to the middle tier of programs out there, and that the administration didn't care, at least from this fan's perspective. The stadium, smaller than it is now, was rarely sold out, and $5 tickets (!) were available every week at Randall's grocery stores. Although I wish it was that cheap (or even $40) to go to a game nowadays, I'll gladly trade being priced out of the game-going experience for the excellence that is now on the field every week.
When John Mackovic was let go in 1997, everyone wondered who we were going to get. There were some big names out there, but Mack Brown was who was chosen. As a casual football fan at that time, I asked, "Who?". I was working at the Erwin Center at that time, and on the day he was to be introduced, I was helping in the parking lot right outside the backstage access area, making sure that the parking space closest to the door was left open for when he was driven in from the airport. When Mack Brown got out of his car, he came up straight to me, thanked me for holding a spot, and talked to me for about 30 seconds, asking how it was going. I was just a student, not anyone important, but he gave me the time of day, and was a very classy individual. I was probably one of the first people not affiliated with the athletics department that met him, and I was impressed, and right away, I knew that he'd do well.
Fast forward to his 12th year here. As of today, he is now 124-26 with Longhorns. The only team in the nation to record at least 10 wins for eight consecutive years (second-longest streak in NCAA history), Mack's squad has been the best in the country during the first decade of the 21st century. (He will have his 9th consecutive 10 win season with a win this weekend against Baylor.)
Brown's 12 consecutive seasons (including 2009) of at least nine wins are a UT first, as are his back-to-back 11-win campaigns (2001-02, 2004-05), eight 10-victory seasons in a row and two 12-plus win seasons (2005, `08). Texas also has set a school record with a streak of 11 straight bowl berths, bettering the nine straight bowl games from 1977-85. UT has extended its streak of Top 25 finishes to 11 in a row, a first since the Horns earned eight final Top 25 rankings in a row from 1968-75. The Longhorns have also extended their current streak of Top 13 finishes to nine, which is a UT record. The Longhorns have claimed or shared the Big 12 South Division title in five of the last 10 years, including three conference championship game berths.
In 11 seasons, Brown's Longhorns squads have featured a Heisman Trophy winner and two runners-up, two Maxwell Award winners, two WCFF Player of the Year Award winners, two Doak Walker Award winners, two Thorpe Award winners, two Nagurski Trophy winners, a Butkus Award winner, a Lombardi Award winner, a Manning Award winner, a Hendricks Award winner, a Draddy Trophy winner, 42 All-Americans, 59 first-team All-Big 12 selections, four Big 12 Offensive Players of the Year, five Big 12 Defensive Players of the Year and 10 Big 12 Freshman of the Year honorees. (Everyone knows that Vince Young was hosed for the Heisman in 2005, and that McCoy probably should have won it last year.)
Anyway, it is a great time to be a Longhorn fan. Mack Brown's influence and ability to change the culture here in Austin is the main reason why. His recruiting prowess, which I didn't even mention, is amazing. Above all that, he is a genuine nice guy. In 2002, at the football banquet, I was taking tickets at the door of the Erwin Center, and he walked through my door, and he said "Hey, you take tickets, too?" There is no way he could have remembered me 5 year later, right? Anyway, this is my first MACK BROWN is AWESOME post. Hook'em!
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