New article by .....
CHUCK CARLTON -- ccarlton@dallasnews.com
Staff Writer
Published: 24 November 2014 09:50 PM
Updated: 25 November 2014 12:05 AM
http://www.dallasnews.com/sports/college-sports/texas-longhorns/20141124-carlton-rocky-tenure-of-texas-seniors-foreshadowed-four-years-ago.ece
AUSTIN — Before they played a game or enrolled on campus, the current Texas senior class got a preview of what awaited them.
Defensive coordinator Will Muschamp was extolling Texas virtues to the gathered prospective recruits in December 2010. When Muschamp left the room, no one paid much attention. Then they noticed breaking TV news on the ESPN ticker: Muschamp had just accepted the head coaching job at Florida.
“I thought it was a joke or something,†senior defensive end Cedric Reed said. “Everybody was just staring at each other.â€
It was more like foreshadowing.
Since then, the seniors have seen defensive coordinator Manny Diaz fired two games into a season and head coach Mack Brown resign under pressure. They experienced new coach Charlie Strong laying down the law and nine teammates being dismissed from the roster.
They faced results that didn’t meet the expectations of a class ranked third nationally by Rivals.com in 2011. With a four-year record of 31-19, the group never managed 10 victories in a season, which used to be the Texas standard.
They’ll play their last home game on Thanksgiving, hosting No. 5 TCU in search of a big finish. At 6-5, Texas is assured of a bowl in Strong’s first year. That outcome wasn’t a given, even a month ago.
“We’ve been through a lot of stuff,†receiver John Harris said, “and we learned lot from it.â€
Early in the season, Strong had openly questioned what seemed to be a passive mind-set in the locker room, as he tried to set expectations. That part of the program has changed.
Regardless of the record, the old and persistent criticism of Texas as a “soft†program has been erased.
The senior leadership helped Texas put together a three-game winning streak after a 23-0 loss to Kansas State. Strong outlined the two possible outcomes for the team to finish and told the players to choose in no uncertain terms.
“Our group of seniors, we could have been real selfish,†said Quandre Diggs, one of the few vocal leaders in the class.
“Three or four games ago, we could have gave up and said we don’t want to play anymore. At the same time, it’s a pride thing. I think everybody will always remember this senior class and everything we’ve been through.â€
Fairly or not, the seniors will be judged by what they did or didn’t do on the field.
The actual impact on the program may take years to actually put in perspective. Reed suggested resiliency may be this group’s legacy.
“Not everything will be the way you want it to,†Reed said. “You have to go with the mind-set you’re going to get it done, no matter what.â€
Strong suggested that the seniors could be part of a championship foundation because of the example they set, and recently recognized all 31 seniors at team meeting. He knew there would be growing pains this year with the adjustment to his “core values†and new offensive and defensive schemes.
“I told them, ‘I'm sorry that this had to be that group. I would have loved to walk out of here with an undefeated team …. I would have loved for that to happen with this team, and it didn’t.
“But I’m so happy that you guys were ... you held it together for us.â€
CHUCK CARLTON -- ccarlton@dallasnews.com
Staff Writer
Published: 24 November 2014 09:50 PM
Updated: 25 November 2014 12:05 AM
http://www.dallasnews.com/sports/college-sports/texas-longhorns/20141124-carlton-rocky-tenure-of-texas-seniors-foreshadowed-four-years-ago.ece
AUSTIN — Before they played a game or enrolled on campus, the current Texas senior class got a preview of what awaited them.
Defensive coordinator Will Muschamp was extolling Texas virtues to the gathered prospective recruits in December 2010. When Muschamp left the room, no one paid much attention. Then they noticed breaking TV news on the ESPN ticker: Muschamp had just accepted the head coaching job at Florida.
“I thought it was a joke or something,†senior defensive end Cedric Reed said. “Everybody was just staring at each other.â€
It was more like foreshadowing.
Since then, the seniors have seen defensive coordinator Manny Diaz fired two games into a season and head coach Mack Brown resign under pressure. They experienced new coach Charlie Strong laying down the law and nine teammates being dismissed from the roster.
They faced results that didn’t meet the expectations of a class ranked third nationally by Rivals.com in 2011. With a four-year record of 31-19, the group never managed 10 victories in a season, which used to be the Texas standard.
They’ll play their last home game on Thanksgiving, hosting No. 5 TCU in search of a big finish. At 6-5, Texas is assured of a bowl in Strong’s first year. That outcome wasn’t a given, even a month ago.
“We’ve been through a lot of stuff,†receiver John Harris said, “and we learned lot from it.â€
Early in the season, Strong had openly questioned what seemed to be a passive mind-set in the locker room, as he tried to set expectations. That part of the program has changed.
Regardless of the record, the old and persistent criticism of Texas as a “soft†program has been erased.
The senior leadership helped Texas put together a three-game winning streak after a 23-0 loss to Kansas State. Strong outlined the two possible outcomes for the team to finish and told the players to choose in no uncertain terms.
“Our group of seniors, we could have been real selfish,†said Quandre Diggs, one of the few vocal leaders in the class.
“Three or four games ago, we could have gave up and said we don’t want to play anymore. At the same time, it’s a pride thing. I think everybody will always remember this senior class and everything we’ve been through.â€
Fairly or not, the seniors will be judged by what they did or didn’t do on the field.
The actual impact on the program may take years to actually put in perspective. Reed suggested resiliency may be this group’s legacy.
“Not everything will be the way you want it to,†Reed said. “You have to go with the mind-set you’re going to get it done, no matter what.â€
Strong suggested that the seniors could be part of a championship foundation because of the example they set, and recently recognized all 31 seniors at team meeting. He knew there would be growing pains this year with the adjustment to his “core values†and new offensive and defensive schemes.
“I told them, ‘I'm sorry that this had to be that group. I would have loved to walk out of here with an undefeated team …. I would have loved for that to happen with this team, and it didn’t.
“But I’m so happy that you guys were ... you held it together for us.â€
