When Coach Royal was hired at Texas, he had several immediate issues to overcome. In Jenna Hays McEachern's book" DKR- The Royal Scrapbook", she notes that Logan Wilson, the University of Texas president, informs Coach Royal that all freshmen will have to pass an entrance exam. In the book "Oklahoma vs Texas", Robert Heard elaborates on Jenna’s point by saying President Logan Wilson is not particularly fond of Longhorn football usurping Academia. Hence, he passed a new rule that requires all students to pass an entrance exam before admission. Up to this point in time, It is the toughest admission standard for a state school in college sports history. In 1957, 23.5 percent of the student body was on scholastic probation.
Royal had no problem with UT's new directive and decided to hire a full-time academic counselor instead of a football recruiting director. Coach Royal says, "We don't need another ' get 'em here' coach: we need a 'keep 'em here coach," and that is what Royal accomplished.
Texas hires Lan Hewlett as the first "brain coach" in college sports. His official title is Academic Counselor. Out of 48 members of the 1969 team, 45 graduated. In Jenna McEachern's book "100 Things", she states that 45 of 48 players on the 1963 team graduated, and The team's GPA was higher than the student body GPA average.
Lan said, “I feel our boys are college students first and athletes second, and I’m sort of the catalyst trying to get an athlete and his professor close together without getting used up in the process.” Texas is the first University in NCAA history to have a full-time "brain coach." Adding an Academic Counselor is one of Coach Royal's finest legacies, and Jenna McEachern states in her book DKR The Royal Scrapbook that "80% of the lettermen during the Royal years graduated".
When I first came to Texas, my academic performance was far from good. The school and community support in Odessa helped me get into Texas. Out of the 50 scholarships offered in 1967, I ranked next to last in the SAT scores. After settling in at Moore-Hill, I was approached by Lan Hewlett, who informed me that Coach Royal wanted to arrange tutoring sessions for me. I followed through with tutoring for four years and graduated with a 3.4 GPA in general business and marketing. My degree has been instrumental in my success over the past 50 years. The History of Longhorn Sports is my final journey in marketing 101.
Royal had no problem with UT's new directive and decided to hire a full-time academic counselor instead of a football recruiting director. Coach Royal says, "We don't need another ' get 'em here' coach: we need a 'keep 'em here coach," and that is what Royal accomplished.
Texas hires Lan Hewlett as the first "brain coach" in college sports. His official title is Academic Counselor. Out of 48 members of the 1969 team, 45 graduated. In Jenna McEachern's book "100 Things", she states that 45 of 48 players on the 1963 team graduated, and The team's GPA was higher than the student body GPA average.
Lan said, “I feel our boys are college students first and athletes second, and I’m sort of the catalyst trying to get an athlete and his professor close together without getting used up in the process.” Texas is the first University in NCAA history to have a full-time "brain coach." Adding an Academic Counselor is one of Coach Royal's finest legacies, and Jenna McEachern states in her book DKR The Royal Scrapbook that "80% of the lettermen during the Royal years graduated".
When I first came to Texas, my academic performance was far from good. The school and community support in Odessa helped me get into Texas. Out of the 50 scholarships offered in 1967, I ranked next to last in the SAT scores. After settling in at Moore-Hill, I was approached by Lan Hewlett, who informed me that Coach Royal wanted to arrange tutoring sessions for me. I followed through with tutoring for four years and graduated with a 3.4 GPA in general business and marketing. My degree has been instrumental in my success over the past 50 years. The History of Longhorn Sports is my final journey in marketing 101.
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