Morgantown, West Virginia – During my hour-long conversation with YouTube sensation The Gold and Blue Dude last night, we discussed multiple potential replacements for Neal Brown as the new head coach of the West Virginia Mountaineers.
One name that Gold and Blue Dude mentioned was former Texas Longhorns head coach Tom Herman. When mentioned, I (wrongly) replied, “Yeah, I don’t get Tom Herman. He wasn’t successful at Texas and I wouldn’t put him in my top ten.” I was quickly corrected. Herman was actually quite successful at Texas and was merely a victim of outrageous, unfair expectations there.
Herman, 47, is not currently coaching anywhere and would certainly consider an incredible opportunity at West Virginia University. In his six seasons as a head coach, Herman was nothing short of spectacular. His first head coaching position was at Houston, where he finished 22-4 overall in two seasons. He was then hired at Texas in 2017 and went 7-6, 10-4, 8-5 and 7-3 in his four seasons with the Longhorns. Also, he is 5-0 in his career in bowl games.
While Herman has quietly disappeared a bit in the world of college football, he was once of the brightest young head coaches in the sport. He’s still relatively young and has never been unsuccessful as a head coach. Having been out of the spotlight for a few years, Herman can likely be hired at a somewhat discounted rate. In addition, Herman’s experience in the Big 12 and recruiting in the state of Texas would be invaluable to West Virginia’s football program.
There will be many high quality head coaches available when West Virginia begins their official search for Neal Brown’s replacement, but few would have the proven track record of success in the Big 12 Conference as Tom Herman. Getting a head coach like Herman, once considered one of the brightest young coaches in all of football, could be precisely what the West Virginia football program needs right now.
To see Brad Smith’s interview with The Gold and Blue Dude, click the link below (Tom Herman discussion starts at 32 minutes and 40 seconds into the show):
