Sixteen months ago, Tom Herman was ahead of schedule.
At least, that's what he was saying.
In scrolling through Orangebloods content from the beginning of the Herman Era, I stumbled across a discussion coming out of the 2018 Big 12 Championship that had Herman claiming the Longhorns were ahead of schedule because they had made the Championship game without an army of all-Big 12 talent for the coaches to work with.
Sixteen months later, the Longhorns still don't have an army of all-Big 12 talent coming off of a disappointing year three and 70 percent of the coaching staff has been replaced.
Can it still be argued that the Longhorns are either ahead of schedule or on schedule going into year four?
Consider what was written 16 months ago.
"When asked by our very own Anwar Richardson about the ahead of schedule claim, Herman pointed to the lack of sure-fire all-BIg 12 players that his staff was working with, despite the fact that the team was playing for a Big 12 title.
If playing in Arlington in December without a team full of all-America candidates is the bar, perhaps Herman is correct. However, I would contend defining the forward progress of the program in a different set of terms is probably a more accurate view of where we stand today, in part because I want to make sure the goal posts don't move.
On the day that Herman was hired, I remember asking a high-level Texas administrator for a guideline of sorts for how we should judge Herman as a head coach following Charlie Strong's journey with the program through the Temple of Doom.
'I just want to see us make strides of improvement in year one. We should be better than we've been,' the administrator said. 'I would like to think at the end of year two that we would be in competition for a Big 12 title. By year three, I think we'll be disappointed if we haven't won a Big 12 title. I would hope that by the time we're going into year four, each season is defined by whether we've won the Big 12 championship and earned a spot in the playoff. That's where we want to be. That's who we want to be.'
When you look at the amount of pressure that is on Herman going into this season, we often view it through the prism of winning in a season with a four-year starter at quarterback entering his senior season, but if we're being 100-percent honest, we'll look back to what the UT administrator said on the day Herman was hired.
"By year three, I think we'll be disappointed if we haven't won a Big 12 title."
By that measure, the Longhorns are behind schedule. Period.
Going into this season, the only way to change that truth is to win a Big 12 Championship and end the run of dominance within the Big 12 by Herman's No. 1 on-field rival.
The hows and the whys matter less than whether it happens. We've simply reached the point of Herman's tenure when winning at a very high level will be expected to occur. Failing to do so will mean that those people establishing the bar for success when Herman was hired would need to go back in time and tell themselves to come up with a different set of expectations if they want to still feel vindicated with the hire at the end of season number four.
Texas knew when it hired Herman that it was hiring someone that still had some growing on the job to do, which is evidenced by the staff changes that were made when the development by the coaches that Herman was bragging on 16 months ago stalled in ways Herman couldn't completely explain.
Moving forward, Texas fans won't want to hear about the labor pains, they'll just want to see the baby.
It's time to get back on schedule.
No. 2 - Some eye-opening depth chart notes ...
I thought @Anwar Richardson had some incredibly provocative depth chart notes in today's Sunday Pulpit, so much so that it warrants its own section in today's 10 Thoughts.
Let's discuss them.
"(Moro Ojomo is expected to compete against Bimage at defensive end this spring. In fact, Ojomo and Bimage will split first-team reps when practice begins."
Instant reaction: It makes sense if you believe Ojomo, Ta'Quan Graham, Keondre Coburn and Joseph Ossai are the four best defensive linemen on the roster and the ultimate goal is to get the four best linemen on the field together as much as possible. This would seem to lock in Graham at the three-technique and makes the Ojomo/Bimage battle perhaps the most interesting position battle on either side of the ball going into the spring.
"Rafiti Ghirmai will compete against Tope Imade at the left guard. Tyler Johnson is currently Imade’s backup."
Instant reaction: The winner of this battle might rank No. 22 of all 22 position starters going into the season. I don't have a lot of confidence at left guard at the moment.
"Chris Adimora is currently ahead of Anthony Cook for the nickelback spot."
Instant reaction: This feels both like a vote of confidence in Adimora's play in the bowl game and an indictment on Cook for the uneven level of play he displayed last season. Chris Ash has seen a lot of the Texas defense since his early October audit of the unit for Tom Herman and Adimora being ahead of Cook is very telling in my estimation. Here's hoping Cook feels the sense of urgency.
"Josh Thompson and D’Shawn Jaminson are currently the number-one cornerbacks."
Instant reaction: Ash told us that he had a crush on Thompson when he met with the media last month and this indicates he wasn't BSing us. Like Cook, you get the sense that Jalen Green needs to feel the urgency of the moment.
No. 3 - Coronavirus thoughts related to Texas football ...
a. With Texas starting spring practices on March 24, you have to wonder how spring football might potentially be altered if university closures continue to pick up steam. While we're not currently in a position of needing to ask the question, we could realistically be a week or two away from such a discussion and it's hard to say how all of this will play out.
If the school moved to online coursing for much of the month of April, would that mean the Longhorns couldn't practice during that time? Could those practices be rescheduled after the semester ends in May? Is the Spring Game in danger? Will the players simply play without a crowd like we're seeing soccer teams do in Italy (see below)? Are these decisions above Tom Herman's pay grade? Will anyone besides coaches care if some schools have more spring practice than conference peers? Given that the disease is supposed to do poorly in hot and humid conditions, which means that we could have a bit of a reprieve until later in the year, is Houston suddenly the most desirable place to be in the state of Texas?
I'm just rambling now.
b. When you consider that air travel will be greatly disrupted in the coming weeks and months, you have to wonder how much of the 2021 recruiting periods will be impacted in the coming weeks.
Are parents going to let their kids get on airplanes?
With the summer heat expected to aid all of us in combatting Coronavirus, it's possible that we'll see a lot of those spring visits rescheduled for the summer, but it's also possible that we'll see an influx of kids staying closer to home in this specific recruiting year because of complications related to travel and the disease itself.
It will make doing extremely well in-state in 2021 even more imperative than it already was.
No. 4 - Of course ...
Could anything possible sum up the five seasons under Shaka Smart more than for 12,733 fans to show up for Saturday's game against Oklahoma State with the Longhorns on a five-game winning streak and a chance to cement a spot in the NCAA Tournament, only to watch the team lose?
By 22.
I'm going to say no.
So, here we are, back to the land of uncertainty, a place where Thursday's game against Texas Tech could see UT's season hang in the balance of 40 minutes. Good times.
We know Chris Del Conte would prefer to keep Shaka Smart if at all possible and there's a part of me that wonders if he viewed Saturday's game as proof that for all of the angst that's been on display this season about the basketball program, two weeks of good basketball will turn out the crowds. Considering the amount of apathy that's been expressed all season, the fans showed up on Saturday ready to do the damn thing in relatively strong numbers.
And Texas lost by 22.
In my mind, this thing simply comes down to what Del Conte thinks of a coaching search. Does he have anyone already lined up ready to go? What's the vibe on John Beilein? If there's much uncertainty, I'd think he'd instinctively lean towards keeping Smart. If he's got his plan ready to rock and roll, change would make sense.
Regardless, I'd have to think nothing that happened on Saturday could possibly change a five-year view of the program and where it might be headed next season with Smart in charge.
Del Conte shouldn't be living day to day on this. Truth be told, he probably isn't.
No. 5 - A sweep on a weekend of celebrating Augie ...
After dropping two games against SEC competition, primarily because the bullpen struggled when called upon, the arms throughout the entire Texas staff did a number over the course of three games against the Titans.
The box score for the Texas bullpen over three games looked like this: 15 innings pitched, zero runs allowed, five hits allowed, two walks and 12 strikeouts.
Augue Garrido used to love the game of baseball because of its ability to create life lessons inside of the game, so he would have loved the response by those bullpen players this weekend.
As we approach the two-year anniversary of Garrido's death, it was nice to see baseball this weekend from the boys in burnt orange that would have done him proud.
No. 6- Keeping company with Cat
It was just a ho-hum weekend for the Texas softball team as it went 4-0 on the weekend, outscoring its opponents 25-5 in the process.
Oh, and Miranda Elish became just the fourth Texas pitcher in history to throw a solo perfect game. It was the first solo perfect game at home since Cat Osterman dialed one up in NCAA Regional play back in 2005.
No. 7 – BUY or SELL …
(Sell) Texas has won three Big 12 titles since the Cowboys last played in a Super Bowl. There's no question it'll get to No. 4 before the Cowboys win a conference title.
(Buy) I'm only buying if the conversation specifically centers around Nick Saban and Urban Meyer, otherwise I think Mack deserves a little more damn respect.
(Sell) We'll see ...
(Buy) This is where my head is.
(Buy) I'd love to return the section, but those stories didn't always generate much attention or discussion. Hell, you're the first person to ask me about them in 12 months.
(Sell) You're asking me if I'd take this group over the one that included Sergio Kindle, Lamarr Houston and Sam Acho?
(Buy) Bingo. I think there's a chance that the 2021 recruiting year is somewhat remembered by the circumstances surrounding it.
(Buy) Mack should have had more, we all know that.
No. 8 - Eternal Randomness of the Spotty Sports Mind ...
... Mack Brown flipped a four-star quarterback from Alabama. Some things change and other things will apparently always be the same.
... In the end, Kansas won its 15th Big 12 title in 16 years by two games over Baylor. Some things change and other things will apparently always be the same.
... Wait, Iowa Freaking State knocked off the Baylor women on Sunday? Excuse me?
... So, who coaches the Nets next season? Gregg Popovich?
... My mind is still a little blown that the Lakes haven't been to the post-season in seven years.
... Damn, LeBron. Two games vs. the Bucks and the Clippers, and two games of reminding the entire world that the title still has to go through him. What must Clippers players have thought about playing a road game at home?
... Remember when Lavar Ball being in the spotlight was a thing?
... Why is 32-year old Tim Tebow still playing baseball?
... It sounds like the women saved UFC248, if it could be saved.
... I watched Juventus/Inter on Sunday afternoon and it's going to be weird watching sports without crowds because of Coronavirus concerns if that game was any indication. It was like watching an early morning NCAA Tournament game involving teams that the home city doesn't care about, but only about 10 times worse.
... Six more points, Liverpool. Six more points.
... I think we've made it way too easy to underrate the greatness of Mohamed Salah.
No. 9 - The List: Top 10 Coming of Age Movies ...
The definition of a coming-to-age story according to one online dictionary was, "Of or pertaining to a person's journey from childhood or adolescence to adulthood."
The reason I looked it up is because I feel like it could be strongly argued that "The Godfather I" is a coming of age story of Michael Corleone, which would mean that it would be impossible for "Stand By Me" to be the No. 1 coming of age movie of all-time. However, since the definition of coming-to-age seems to mostly include a journey that includes childhood to adulthood and not just young adulthood to adulthood, I'll stick to a top 10 list that doesn't include a 25-year old Corleone coming back from World War II.
Missed The Cut: Boyhood, The Outsiders, Ferris Bueller's Day Off, A Bronx Tale, Fast Times at Ridgemont High and The Karate Kid
10. Dirty Dancing
9. Lady Bird
8. Boyz N The Hood
7. Dazed and Confused
6. Good Will Hunting
5. The Breakfast Club
4. Dead Poet's Society
3. Stand By Me
2. Almost Famous
1. Rebel Without a Cause
No.10 - And finally...
Very simply...
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