No more excuses: Time is running out for Tom Herman to fix Texas

Authored by 247sports.com and submitted by DFWnation
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DALLAS — On a day in which everything felt different at the 116th rendition of the Red River Showdown, two things remained shockingly the same: The wildness of the Red River Rivalry and Texas’ penchant for costly, unforced and self-inflicted errors. Those shoot-yourself-in-the foot moments defined the No. 22 Longhorns’ 53-45 loss to Oklahoma, a game that spanned four overtimes.

Texas hired Tom Herman four years ago to cut that sickness out of the program. Saturday, cameras caught him in a constant state of pained sideline expressions, a surrender cobra gallery reserved for only the most baffled of fans.

Some might deflect blame from Herman after this performance. He isn’t the one who fumbled on Texas’ opening possession. He isn’t the one who earned an unsportsmanlike conduct penalty on Oklahoma’s one-yard line. He isn’t the PUNTER who drew an unsportsmanlike penalty in his own territory in a tie game. He isn’t the field goal unit that surrendered a block in overtime.

He is, however, the coach who could have twice ended the game on his own terms by going for two against a tired, reeling Oklahoma defense. He is the coach whose team wasted a heroic six-touchdown effort by senior quarterback Sam Ehlinger. Herman’s team was undisciplined. Herman’s team played to lose. This loss falls at Herman’s feet.

“A lot of (the mistakes) are self-inflicted," Herman said. "I’m disappointed. Again, it’s my job to make sure they don’t happen.”

To understand the severity of Texas’ blunders Saturday, one must realize how advantaged the Longhorns were.

Oklahoma stumbled into Dallas having lost two straight Big 12 games for the first time since 1999. The Sooners employed a redshirt freshman QB (who had three turnovers), a fourth-string running back, a patchwork group of receivers and a defense playing without, arguably, its two best players – the suspended Ronnie Perkins and the opted-out Jalen Redmond. As Oklahoma head coach Lincoln Riley said postgame: "Our roster is all over the place."

The Sooners, winners of five straight Big 12 titles, had no shortage of excuses. They also didn’t lack for mistakes, at one point turning the ball over on three straight possessions in the first half. Didn’t matter. Oklahoma refused to buckle. It stopped making stupid mistakes. The Sooners rallied, got punched in the face at the end of regulation, missed a game-winning field goal attempt and then rallied again.

“I could not be prouder of this team," Riley said.

Did anyone have any allusions Texas could consistently do the same?

This should’ve been the Longhorns’ year. Texas landed back-to-back-to-back Top 10 recruiting classes entering Herman’s fourth season. The Longhorns had Sam Ehlinger, a fourth-year, record-setting QB and 15 starters returning around him. There were no excuses but for Texas to take the next step.

Instead: Gary Patterson won his third of four games against Tom Herman

Instead: Texas needed a botched onside kick recovery to escape Lubbock.

This Longhorn team should be 1-3. You could point to a dozen reasons for the subpar start. But on a day like today, it’s difficult to look anywhere but the coaching staff. That’s Herman’s hand-picked staff, by the way. He hit the reset button this offseason with seven new assistant coaches and two new coordinators. Herman played the get-out-of-jail free card highly-paid coaches seem to automatically receive.

Schemes changed. The preseason messaging changed a little. The on-field result? The same.

Texas ranked 112th in penalties Herman’s first season, 125th in his second and 109th in his third. This year? The Longhorns sat 67th out of 75 teams. Texas added 11 more to its ledger Saturday, costing the team at least 10 points.

Those are mental errors, and they, more than anything, belong at the feet of the head coach.

The 2020 season is still young. A 1-2 Texas, shockingly, sits at the same place in the Big 12 standings as Oklahoma. The Longhorns are still very much alive for a conference title appearance. But that’s merely a technicality. Texas, as overwhelmingly talented as it is on paper and as fantastic as it looks for stretches, has yet to show it can make that sort of run with any consistency – the longest win streak of Herman’s tenure is six games.

That leads us to the only place it can: Buyouts and talk of Herman’s future.

He’s recruited the talent. He’s had the time. He's had the quarterback. He’s had the resources. Yet things remain static as they’ve ever been. Herman is 27-17 as Texas’ head coach. That’s better than the six years that preceded his tenure at 46-42. But things aren’t fixed if an underperforming team performs slightly better. The problem remains, and it seems systemic.

It’s too early to know if Herman’s slow start will put his job in jeopardy. COVID-19 has impacted every athletic department in the country, and the Longhorns are expected to bleed $54.3 million in revenue this fiscal year. Herman, who received a contract extension following the 2018 season, carries a hefty buyout in the range of $15 million or $20 million, according to those familiar with the program. That’s no small sum. It’s also not a large enough fence to keep the wolves out if boosters really want a change in Austin — and if they really think Urban Meyer would be interested in righting this ship.

Before kickoff in Dallas, I witnessed a Texas Longhorns fan stumble and drop his $7 beer. His fraternity brothers proceeded to stand around him and mock him incessantly. I didn’t think I’d see a worse self-imposed mistake all day.

Then Texas’ Saturday afternoon happened. A day filled with opportunity, squandered again and again.

mapbc on October 11st, 2020 at 14:38 UTC »

He’s done

Don’t pretend they’re not already scouting his replacement.

eye_can_see_you on October 11st, 2020 at 13:44 UTC »

Time has kinda already run out

This is what a full TH team looks like. 4 years of good recruiting, senior QB, 4 stars all over the field

And we require our QB going hero mode to even beat a shitty Tech team and can't beat the worst OU team in 20 years

Does anyone really see anything from him that convinced you he will ever be able to win the conference, let alone compete for a playoff spot?

RegionalBias on October 11st, 2020 at 13:37 UTC »

It's always fascinating when a coach at a place like Houston can have a better team than when he moves to the big school with huge resources.