Strong, Franklin are first Black head football coaches at storied programs
Waves are being made across the world of major college football as two - yes, two - Black coaches are finding themselves in much higher profile positions.
By now, you should already know about the big hire Texas made in securing former Louisville coach Charlie Strong to replace legendary skipper Mack Brown. While the nation is still celebrating (or lamenting) that move, history is brewing up in Pennsylvania as Vanderbilt coach James Franklin is set to take over the coveted Penn State position Bill O'Brien vacated last week when he returned to the NFL. But - as expected - there's always those trying to throw shade when the next brother moves up into coaching's big leagues.
During the Texas process, which started when Mack Brown resigned from the position after the Heisman presentation in December, there were a lot of candidates on the table to get the job, among them recent BCS title game participants Jimbo Fisher of national champion Florida State and Gus Malzahn, the National Coach of the Year from SEC titleholder Auburn. There was relative surprise when Strong's name surged to the front as well as the eventual hire. The 'good-ol-boy' ghosts reared their head when noted Texas booster Red McCombs publicly said he would have rather had Monday Night Football analyst Jon Gruden in that job, calling Strong "a good position coach". Here's some numbers to shut Mr. McCombs up: between 2010 and 2013, Charlie Strong has 37 wins on his ledger, all at Louisville and NEVER FINISHED LAST IN HIS CONFERENCE (Big East/American). Mack Brown in the same time frame had 29 and finished last in the Big 12 in 2010. Also in that time frame, Charlie Strong has three bowl wins, including an impressive 2012 Sugar Bowl verdict over Florida, the team Strong coached in the 2004 Peach Bowl following Ron Zook's firing. The last major bowl game Texas was in: the 2009 BCS National Championship, the first of Alabama's three titles. I do believe the Longhorns have their man, and maybe the catalyst to revive the UT-A&M rivalry.
Coach Franklin has a more under-the-radar story in his rise to major college football, but his work with the SEC's lone private university is not only turning heads in Music City and the conference, but across the nation. An infamous case this past year involving some top players on the team being dismissed by him let the country know that his tenure was not going to be marred by the indiscretions of a few. He - like Strong - has also gone to a bowl game in every year of his tenure, including a 'home' win in the 2012 Music City and a squeaker in this year's BBVA Compass. 24 wins and two 9-win seasons in a row definitely caught the attention of the folks in Happy Valley, and by the time you read this, Franklin should be trading in old gold anchors for traditional Navy and white. Oh, almost forgot... Franklin is only 41, so expect him to spend a lot of years in his home state for a while.
Of course, there will be that old line popping up on outlets coast to coast saying they are the first Black blah blah blah. Quite frankly, it's a line that is tiresome, but in the case of these two programs, it does have its warrant. Texas never had a Black coach in any sport until Strong's arrival. Funny, that sounds like Notre Dame's situation in 2004 prior to Tyrone Willingham's hire. Penn State is hiring their first Black football coach after over 50 years with the Paterno family in tow. What does that do for recruiting? For the Nittany Lions, it should boost in-state recruiting. Franklin's a Pennsylvania native, which made the hire make sense. Expect a nice spike to happen for Strong and the Longhorns right away because... well, it's Texas. Not bad for a man getting ready to coach in the stadium named after a man who flat out refused to have Blacks even play for the Longhorns (that would be Darrel Royal).
Besides, Kevin Sumlin vs Charlie Strong sounds like a great reason to get that series going again... right, Red?
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