If it is true that a fan’s public support helps recruit quality athletes, then it is REASONABLE to assume that a fan’s public criticism hurts the recruiting process.  

JIM BOB MOFFITT shares his story about fans.

If It Is True That A Fan’s Public Support Helps Recruit Quality Athletes, Then It Is REASONABLE To Assume That A Fan’s Public Criticism Hurts The Recruiting Process.

JIM BOB MOFFITT SHARES HIS STORY ABOUT FANS.

His historical story starts in 1956, the worst year in the history of Longhorn football. On this 1956 team with a 1-9 record was a young man named Jim Bob Moffitt. Jim had a front-row seat on how to change a losing team into a winning team in one year (Royal’s first year as Texas coach).

After graduating from Texas, Jim Bob took these lessons learned and founded Freeport-McMoRan. For many, he was a politically controversial character but that never slowed him down while he built one of the world’s largest natural resources companies. He used some of his wealth to develop Westlake, Texas, and to support the U.T. Athletic Department. DKR and Jim Bob built a friendship that lasted a lifetime.

Jim Bob witnessed firsthand the collaboration between Royal, fans, and administration that resulted in a successful Longhorn football program. However, he was also present during a difficult period in the team’s history, which started with Mack Brown’s last three years as the Texas head coach, followed by coaches Strong and Herman’s tenures. During this time, negative comments from Longhorn supporters on the internet played a significant role in the firing or resignation of these coaches.

Jim Bob says, “You can’t win with controversy, whether it’s corporate America or athletics.” Controversy “breeds defeat. Unity breeds success.” In the 1950s, “we lost that chemistry, that unity, and that led to our demise.” Everyone (fans and administration) have to rally around: we have to support the program.” 

Controversy breeds defeat, and Texas’s football performance from 2011 to 2022 was defeated. Like it or not, Longhorn fan negativity spread on the internet hurt the program. Controversy “breeds defeat.  

” More than in 1957, the U.T. administration is inundated with Longhorn websites that allow anyone to say anything.

Some Longhorn fans know just enough about sports to make themselves dangerous to the Longhorn Nation and the recruiting process. I choose to share Longhorn sports history, hoping we can look backward to move forward with lessons learned years ago. If we don’t remember lessons learned, we will never have an elite football program again.

Some fans who are loving and compassionate in the light of day morph into dark souls posting mean-spirited comments about Longhorn sports from their offices or closets. In a worst-case scenario, their words are predatory, and in a best-case are juvenile. Unfortunately, the internet cannot discern between intelligent and stupid remarks, so all post-receive equal billing on the internet. Again, it is a liability that extends power and influence to those who don’t deserve it. Freedom of speech works overtime on the Longhorn fan sites.

However, while social media has a large base of readers that download their angry thoughts much quicker than in the past, angry fan’s comments did not start with internet access. Fan dissent with the U.T. athletic department’s decisions is the norm, not the exception in Longhorn sports history. Dissent has been instilled in the hearts of Longhorn fans since 1894.

Sports writer Lou Maysel said it best about Longhorn fans

“The critical and suspicious nature of fans manifested itself early in the schools football history. “

Through the decades, many Longhorn coaches have fallen short. Some of the terminations and resignations were warranted, but others were not.

Longhorn Fans are not always right, but they are always heard.

One final thought. I know we all have expectations of winning a National Championship (I do too). However, we also know that is a REALLY hard thing to do. All the stars have to line up….an injury, an untimely turnover, one missed tackle…and those dreams fade away. The fact is, most of us in this network haven’t won a National Championship but, at the end of the day, it’s the Orange/White and that awesome freaking logo on the side of our helmet that is part of who WE are long after our football days are over. It’s what binds all of us together. The Longhorn “brand” must be protected at all cost and I believe it starts with a disciplined program on the 40 acres……regardless of who is coaching the team!

Hook’em!

John Fuquay

In his book “Longhorn and Tall Tails”, Duke Carlisle says that Fans think coaching is a “common sense” profession. But, with a sense of humor, he says, “fans also have certain rules they expect a coach to follow, such as don’t pass if it’s going to be intercepted, or never go for two unless you make it.” Hindsight makes fans great coaches, and fan hindsight has cost many good coaches their job.

In September 1956, The Ranger paper stated that “Texas fans in both basketball and football are considered rude, ruthless, and unforgiving.” The article goes on to say, “Although the alumni have many ways of reaching a football game, they usually (like to) ride the coaches.” 

The History of LONGHORN FANS

Since 1894, Coaches and passionate fans have quarreled, with the coach losing most of the arguments.

1894- Coach Wentworth’s first year as head coach record was 6-1, but the fans thought his playing calling and judgment were not sound, so Wentworth was released.

1895- Coach Frank “Little” Crawford won his first four games 88- 0 , but was so nervous about being fired he left before the season was complete.

1896- Coach Jake Robinson took the Longhorns to Mexico to play some football games for a month and was justifiably released from his coaching duties.

1898 – Coach David Edwards lasted a year. He had a 5-1 record but chose to change the color of the uniforms from orange and white to orange and maroon, and the fans ran him off.

1900-1901 Coach Samuel Juston “Shy” Thompson was the first Longhorn football coach to last for more than one season. He was able to coach for two seasons, but during his tenure, he lost to a team he had warned the Texas administration about. Coach Thompson told the administration not to play against the American School of Osteopathy because he believed the football team had a lot of “ringers”. However, the administration didn’t listen to him, and as a result, Texas lost 48-0.

1906 – Coach H.R. Schenker proved that you don’t need to know how to coach to win. His record was 9-1, but that was because one of the players – Lucian Parrish, who later became a U.S. Congressman, coached the team. The truth was that Coach Schenker knew very little about the game of football, and his contract was not extended.

1906-1908 -Coach Metzenthis rescued the financially troubled football program by working for free. His first team finished 6-1. But in 1908, the team was 5-4, and Coach Metzenthin got tired of being criticized by Longhorn fans and resigned.

1910 – Coach Wasmud never coached a game. He sleepwalked from his second-floor apartment to his death .

1911-1915- Coach Dave Allerdice, up to this point in time, was the most successful and longest-tenured Longhorn football coach with a 33-7 record. Coach Allerdice was well-liked, but in 1915, the team was a loser, leading to a fan revolt. Even with a 33-7 record, Allerdice resigned because of what he considered the “supercritical nature of the Texas fans.”  Allerdice teams still hold some Longhorn football records, and he is in the Longhorn Hall of Honor.

1917-1919- During the war years, coach Bill Juneau managed a 19-7 record, but even with a 19-7 record in five seasons, he never won the SWC, and the fans’ and administration’s criticism was relentless. He did not enjoy the continual pressure to win, so he resigned. Coach Juneau was the first U.T. coach with a losing season record.

1920- 1922 Coach Berry Whitaker did not want the coaching job, but A.D. Belmont forced him to take it. His team finished 22-3-1 with one undefeated season and a SWC championship. Whitaker said, “I’m too thin-skinned and conscientious; defeats kill me, and I was coming down with ulcers and that kind of thing.” Even with a pristine record, Coach Berry Whitaker was run off by fan pressure to win.

Coach Whitaker was offered and accepted the intramural directorship and shined in that position for 40 years

1923-1926- Doc Stewart was a successful Longhorn coach with a 24-9-3 record for not winning enough. His interest in investing in three summer camps diluted his service to U.T. Athletics, and he was released.

1927-1933- Clyde Littlefield is considered one of the greatest all-around athletes and coaches in the history of Longhorn sports. He had an impressive record of 44-18-6 as a head coach and was the first football coach to win two SWC championships. However, in 1933, the team had a 4-5-2 record, which was remembered as the first losing season in over 40 years at Texas. Due to fan pressure and powerful internal forces, he resigned from his football coaching position but continued as the head coach of Track and Field.

1934-1936 Jack Chevigny was one of the worst Longhorn football coaches in history, with a career record 13-14-2. He rose quickly but fell even faster, eventually resigning.

1947-1950 Coach Cherry resigns after compiling a 32-10-1 record at Texas that included top 5 nationally rankings for 3 of 5 years. He was so good that Chicago and Washington approached him to coach professional football, but he declined the invitation.

But he could not beat O.U., so the frustrated fans sent him letters and called him via phone with alarming comments. After losing to a Doak Walker-led team, a doctor wrote Cherry questioning his coaching ability. Cherry responded to the physician, “You sound like a doctor who never lost a patient.” On another occasion, Cherry received a note stating, “Boy, you’re on the spot. If you don’t win, you’d better not come home.”

In his exit statement, Cherry said: “While much is made of the fact that most coaches are paid more than college presidents, the financial rewards are an insufficient attraction when the hazards are all considered.” “I’m going into the oil business, which is simpler than football coaching. You dig a hole, and oil comes out, or it doesn’t.”

Author and former Longhorn football player R.E. Peppy Blount says in his book “Mamas, Don’t Let Your Babies Grow to Play Football” that it was frustrating to him as a player to see Cherry quit. Blount said, “The overzealous ex-student and super fan is the anathema of every college football coach.”

1951-1956- Coach Price was well-liked and had some success at Texas, but a 1-9 season in 1956 resulted in him being hung in effigy three times, leading to his resignation.

Fans are even critical of players off the field. In an excellent game for Harley Sewell in the 1953 Cotton Bowl, a fan complains to J.T. King that he saw Sewell dipping snuff. King said to the fan, “If you find out what brand Harley is dipping, I’ll recommend it to the whole damn team.” 

1957-1976 COACH ROYAL

In 1959, with the team 8-0, the San Antonio Express newspaper stated that Royal benched Lackey for quarreling with him at halftime. Royal denies it and, in frustration, says to the fanbase, “After winning eight straight, suddenly the players are out of shape, there’s dissension in the club, and we are underclad.”

Royal also commented on the Longhorn fan base, saying, “Everyone graduates with a coaching degree.” In 1971, Coach Royal told the Longhorn fans, “We’re beginning to develop some difficult fans. They Don’t Understand There’s No Such Person As King Kong And That When You Start Thinking There Is, You Can Get Ready To Wipe Your Bloody Nose.” Royal thought the media tended to be the worst fans, but he understood their role and said, “Keep ’em sullen but not defiant.” 

The fans were not happy after Notre Dame ended the T’s winning streak at 30 games. Royal said, “There are some people around here who think all we have to do is put on an orange uniform, crawl out there in the Wishbone, and say, ‘Bang, you’re dead.”

In 1976, when Royal retired, the fans were so disgruntled with the season that only 49 341 fans attended the game. After deciding to resign, Royal said, “Winning did not excite him anymore, and he found it difficult to recover mentally from losses and the critiques. He said, “Climbing is a thrill. Maintaining is a Bitch.”  

Coach Lemons 1976-1982

The two individuals who supported Abe Lemons’s coaching philosophy and protected him from the Athletic Council are no longer part of the Athletic decision-making process. Board Regent Frank Erwin passes away, and Darrell Royal retires. Abe Lemons’s enemies start to tighten the noose around Lemons’ neck. Lemons immediately has some conflicts with the new A.D. Bill Ellington. A subpoena for Coach Lemons and his two assistants to discuss gambling results in a media feud between Asst.Coach Moeller and Coach Lemons. Moeller gets fired and goes on the offensive by stating Lemon’s criticism of the players publicly and privately Is hurting recruiting. Many of the players deny Moeller’s remarks. According to Bill Little’s book, Texas Longhorns Men’s Basketball Hoop Tales, Coach Lemmons is funny. One Of Lemmon’s Players (Krivacs) says he has “people dying laughing on the sideline;…. Everybody we played against was bigger, faster, stronger, and quicker, but that’s not what winning is all about. We had a smarter coach.” Danks calls Abe a genius. “He wasn’t the most technical coach you ever saw, but when it came to the human condition, he was an expert.” “He knew how to get inside people’s heads.” Ovie Dotson said, “Coach took the losses, and we got the wins. He treated us like men.” “Abe always believed it was a player’s game.” Wacker says Lemons is a “masterful technician who knows how to get the best out of his players. The grand jury investigation on gambling was quickly dispelled, but the investigation still hurt Abe Lemons’s reputation.

After playing a lousy basketball game against Rice and winning, Longhorn Coach Lemons says, “ I ain’t knocking winning, but it’s not often you can play that bad and win. We’re a little weak in some spots- like five- and so is Rice. And they can’t help it any more than we can”. In the Austin game, the Rice coach substitutes 99 times, and the fans holler for more substitutions, and the Rice coach does as requested, bringing all the Longhorn fans to their feet. Abe says Rice substitutions looked more like a circus act than a basketball game. Later in the year, when Texas played Rice in Houston a Rice student dressed up as a clown to celebrate their new mantra.

1977-1986 – COACH AKERS

1977- Fred Akers had the second most wins as a Longhorn coach as of 1998 with a record of 86-31-2. Winning two SWC championships and several years rated in the top 10 in the nation was not enough for the fan base. He was fired in 1986

Under Coach Akers, Texas had gone bowling all six years, but many fans still gave him the moniker “Not Ready Freddie.” Aker said about critical Longhorn fans, “That’s what coaching has in common with the world’s oldest profession. It’s not the long hours that get you; it’s the amateur competition.

In the last two years of Aker’s reign, some Texas alumni called kids and told them not to come to Texas. Longhorn recruiting coordinator James Blackwood says. “they thought they were hurting Fred Akers, but mostly they hurt the University of Texas.”

Loyal Royal Fans said, “Akers Can’t Win The Big One.” “ “Bill Little Said, “DKR Never Cut Up Akers- his Friends Did.”   

Deloss Dodds Says about Akers, “It Wasn’t His Coaching. It Wasn’t His Recruiting. It Was The Division Of People. We Were So Split, So Unhappy. People Were Just Not Satisfied. People Didn’t Like Fred.”

1987-1991 – Coach McWilliams

Of course, if all fans were terrible all the time, then hiring coaches would be problematic, but that is not the case. There are also great fans, as witnessed by quotes from Longhorn coaches in 1990. Coach McWilliams praises the Longhorn Fans. As head coach, Coach McWilliams had three losing seasons and resigned one year after winning the SWC championship but remained at U.T. with the Athletic department.

1992-1997- Coach John Mackovic

A Deloss Dodds hire that was a flop! Even though Mackovic won the SWC and Big 12 championships, In “100 Things,” author Jenna McEachern says, “ John Mackovic managed to offend almost everyone associated with the UT athletics program with his aloof manner and lack of interest in Texas tradition.” The loss to UCLA 66-3 and the 1997 losing season was more than 99.9999 percent of Longhorns could accept, and he left the program.

Coach Weltlich – basketball

COACH WELTLICH COACHING STYLE WAS NEVER ACCEPTED BY THE MEDIA, PLAYERS, OR THE FANS, AND IT HURT HIS ABILITY TO RECRUIT THE GREAT ATHLETES.

During his time at Texas, Bob Weltlich faced a lot of criticism from the fans. They nicknamed the Erwin Center “Hum Drum” and wrote an unflattering book about him titled “Six Years With Weltlich.” There were even rumors that the players were not interested in starting a “Let Bob” rally, and they gave him the name “Kaiser Bob”. With all the negative comments surrounding him, it was tough for Bob to recruit great high school athletes. However, he still managed to tie for the SWC championship once and in 1985, he was named SWC coach of the year.

Coach Weltlich’s First Year Is Plagued With Manpower Issues Due To Voluntary And Involuntary Departures Of Team Members. He Uses 8 Freshman Walk-On’s Including A UT Cheerleader (Lance Watson) During The Season Looking For A Winning Combination. The Media And Fans Have A Field Day With The Use Of The CheerLeader. When Texas Is Struggling During A Game, The Fans Say “Put In The Cheerleader!!”

Coach Elliott women’s volleyball

Author Chris O’Connell for Alcalde shares a story about volleyball head coach Elliott that discusses unrealistic fan expectations. In the Alcalde article, Coach Elliott says that the expectations—some largely self-imposed—had taken a bit of the joy out of winning. “The more you win, the more miserable coaching becomes,” he says, “because you’re expected to win those games, and there’s not a whole lot of joy from it.”  

Coach Mack Brown

A significant number of fans in Texas began to call for Coach Brown’s firing, despite his impressive .800 conference winning percentage over seven seasons. They dubbed him “Coach February” due to his recruiting success but questioned his ability to coach during high-pressure games. This was because, as of the 2005 season, Brown’s teams had lost eight consecutive games against top 10 opponents. Some believed that his talented athletes were unable to perform under pressure in crucial games. However, this perception changed after Texas defeated Ohio State in 2005, thanks to a perfect pass from Vince to Limas Sweed.