Following a disastrous performance against BYU in which the Texas Longhorns gave up a school record 550 yards rushing, head coach Mack Brown made the decision to fire defensive coordinator Manny Diaz and replace him with Greg Robinson. The firing means several things for the Longhorns, some obvious and some not. Here are the top three:
1. Manny Diaz’s star has fallen
When Diaz came to Texas following the loss of defensive coordinator and coach-in-waiting Will Muschamp to Florida, he had high expectations. How quickly things change. Diaz has gone from budding star to scapegoat. Now Texas turns from a potential rising star to an experienced veteran.
2. The eyes of Texas are upon Greg Robinson
Time for a history lesson. The 61-year-old Robinson has made plenty of stops in his coaching career. He was a defensive coordinator at the NFL level for nearly 10 years, coaching for the Broncos, Jets and Chiefs. He then spent a year at Texas as coordinator before becoming Syracuse’s head coach. While Robinson was successful in his only season at Texas, he went 10-37 at Syracuse before being fired. He then took over at Michigan as defensive coordinator for Rich Rodriguez. The Michigan defense struggled during Robinson’s time and he was fired with Rodriguez and the rest of his staff. Mack Brown blames the Michigan struggles on the players and not Robinson, because he “had really bad players.” Robinson is going to be expected to turn around the Texas defense - and fast. Otherwise, his job won’t be the only one in jeopardy.
3. Mack Brown is desperate
Despite Brown saying other wise, the firing of Diaz reeks of desperation. The move was probably necessary, but that doesn’t mean it’s not desperate. Mack Brown said this summer that he wouldn’t get fired, but expectations are bigger in Texas and Brown knows that. If Texas fails to at least contend for a Big 12 title, or worse, put up another 2010 season, Brown’s seat will be hotter than a summer day in Austin.
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