Charlie Strong’s main job at Texas is to be a football coach. #1 thing a football coach needs to do is win football games. Don’t be fooled when you hear stuff like coaches are supposed to make boys into men and all that stuff. That is just good PR and sound bites.
#1 thing is to WIN, everything else is secondary. Charlie Strong focus appears to be cleaning up the program, which is an admirable, but he won’t have the time to clean it up if he gets fired and if he doesn’t win that is going to happen.
As Deadspin points out courtesy of ESPN he is drug testing the hell out of his players.
According to data the newspaper acquired through an open records request, Texas drug tested every player after spring break in March. Players who were considered at-risk were then subject to more frequent testing.
A total of 18 Longhorns players were tested again April 11, and 15 were tested July 19 during summer conditioning. Five days after that round of testing, three Texas players — running backs Joe Bergeron and Jalen Overstreet and defensive back Chevoski Collins — were dismissed from the program for violating team rules. Three more players were suspended indefinitely. Texas continued to drug test during fall practice — two tests Aug. 11, seven Aug. 22 — and seven tests were administered the day before the Longhorns’ season-opening win over North Texas.
Shortly after the final preseason drug test, Strong suspended starting linemen Desmond Harrison and Kennedy Estelle indefinitely and kicked backup linebacker Deoundrei Davis off the team. Estelle was dismissed from the program Tuesday after another rules violation.
I understand you don’t want drug addicts on your team, but unless Tony Montana is playing for the Longhorns, Strong needs to chill a little bit. Mark my words this is going to start effecting recruiting, if he keeps this up and players are going to start going to Texas A&M where the reins are a little looser.
College is supposed to be fun and if you are going to play for a drill sergeant that sergeant better be leading a great army and currently Strong is not.
Here are more of my thoughts on Strong via my appearance on Campus Insiders.
H/T Statesmen