Mack's fault we're losing recruits?

No, this is Bush's fault!

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Well it may have helped if he said something along the lines of "You committed to The University of Texas, not me."
 
Please forgive the cynicism. I get a sense about people -- very early -- and I am usually on the mark. Mack is one or the toughest "reads" I have ever encountered.

I believe that the man changed over his tenure at Texas, and particularly after the Alabama game in 2010. But interestingly, I'm not sure that he was really "having fun" even after we won the NCG on 1/4/06. Like most of us, I have watched and studied that game many many times. Not once -- either during or after the game -- did I observe "joy" in his face. Even when Vince scored, there was no exuberant outburst. None. No emotion...

Over the past few years I got the sense that his public persona and his private nature were in conflict. Based on the information that was available, it became apparent that he dug in and circled the wagons last fall. In my mind there is little doubt that his resignation was forced, and that bad feelings linger. I really do hope that he publishes that story to which he alluded in his final press conference. However, by then, perhaps his frustration about the last several weeks will have waned, and that he will have come to the realization that it was time.

Is he gently sabotaging our recruiting efforts with prior commits? I don't know and I sincerely hope not. But it wouldn't surprise me if, by his actions, he is sending messages that are not helping us.
 
This is a confusing story that has the media being utterly irresponsible. First of all, this all started yesterday as the ABC affiliate in Houston had this interview with our commit John Bonney (Link) in which he said that Mack had told the recruits that he would help them find a place if they are looking around because he wanted the best for them. The news station cut away with a grand statement "the recruit visited other places because he said Mack Brown told him so!". Talk about creating a story!

For all we know Mack would have told the recruits, as I would certainly expect him (or any decent coach) to do, "Stay with your commitment. They won't hire a bad coach or anything. But if you don't like it, feel free to call me and I will help you". After recruiting a player for a year or two and hearing them ask "now you are just up and quitting on us?", that offer of help is the least any coach would do.

We have heard of no evidence that Mack has had contact with any recruits since mid december when he talked to the recruits and sites like 247 (link above) had said that he would help the recruits. There was no outrage on what 247 reported some 7 weeks back. But now everybody sees the TV station create a story out of what an 17 year old kid said rather carelessly, and all hell breaks loose. I mean the mud that people are throwing at Mack brown at other sites, without a thought on finding what the details are, has to be seen to be believed.

I would wait to see other recruits (or Bonney himself) explain *exactly* what Mack Brown had said back on Dec 14th or thereafter. This may be just media creating hell once again.

Let a coach who had the best record in the business for a 6 year period and is top-10 all-time in college wins, go away peacefully. To throw away mountains of evidence on how unquestionable Mack's integrity was for some 25 years of his career and expect him to be doing negative recruiting against UT now, all on the basis of a John Bonney remark? We should know better to wait for more evidence than to buy it lock-stock-barrel.

R.J.
 
No, I wasn't accusing you, tejas77. You were just reporting what was out there, and I was only commenting on the story.
 
I agree with jayakris above. That whole week was all confusing in order to understand what actually went down.

However, the net result was that it was a recruiting disaster for the recruits that made their official visit on Dec 13.
Alaka and Lealaimatafao eventually were lost. The Foreman brothers were difficult to bring back. Bonney, Gray,
and L.Joe are still on the bubble in the final days. It is strange how all of those recruits were affected adversely by
being here when that fiasco went down. Somebody was not thinking about recruiting during "resignation week."
 
^^ I am sure there was negativity all around that weekend. People knew that Mack was a goner. That was when the anti-Mack crowd was throwing the worst daggers at Mack to make make sure that nobody would even think of not canning Mack. It's surely possible that the recruits heard all kinds of things from all kinds of people that weekend. Certainly there would be Mack-supporters, including even current players, who would have at least hinted (if not explicitly say) that the next coach would well be worse. It would all have made the recruits want to not consider UT, which must have looked like the worst cesspool out there. Not surprising that some of them looked elsewhere. None of it means that Mack "asked them to go elsewhere" which is what some people are accusing Mack of. I seriously doubt it, unless any evidence emerges. In fact, I am sure we would have heard in no time, right the week after, had he actually done that.
 
My take is:

Mack was trying to HELP the young men make the best decisions for their futures. I suspect he felt that his resigning at that time might put them in a bind as far as finding a place to go if the new staff did not suit them. Mack may have been upset by the way things worked out but I doubt he would go against his nature to look after his players. There are some things about Mack's style I dislike but I do not doubt his commitment to trying to help young people. I do not believe for a second that Mack was trying to hurt his successor who was unknown at the time.
 
And why would Mack risk his reputation and trust 18 year olds to keep their mouths shut about his agenda? He's been in the game too long for a dumb move like that.
 
Anyway, the aforementioned John Bonney was there yesterday at UT for the informal "senior day" that the new staff put together for the commits, and has apparently told other players that he is solidly committed to Texas. If so, and it's after Mack had told him to look elsewhere, then Mack was a failure at even negative recruiting
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... Sorry, Coach Mack, you are good at nothing now, sir!
 
Ok, Jerry Bonney cleared the air on what Mack Brown said. ESPN has what he said.
The Link

Just like what I had guessed above on what mack might have said. Even in saying that Texas will hire a good coach. Gosh, the storms in tea cups that the media creates!

Anyway, as the article also says, Mack even tweeted today about that. Sad that people made him have to tweet to defend himself.

And now we also find that Patterson was right there with him when he talked to the recruits that weekend. Do we really think that Mack would be that stupid and classless as to ask the recruits to go elsewhere with the Texas AD standing next to him?
 
This whole thing gives me tired head. It was time for Mack Brown to go, but the vitriol that some are continuing to spew forth is bordering on the absurd. I guess some will never be satisfied until they get their pound of flesh.

Mack's teams didn't perform well over the last few years and he made some mistakes along the way, all of which ultimately cost him his job. Mack Brown was a football coach. For almost half of a century, I've been as big of a fan of the game as anyone else, but there are far more important things in life to get riled up about. The Mack Brown chapter is now closed. Time to move on.
 
Never let the facts get in the way of good hate mail.

The negative bloggers were as much, or more, responsible, for any recruiting losses, like the humidor and that BS.
 
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