In a matter of hours, all the speculation about the job status of Mack Brown and Nick Saban may have come to an end.
On Friday night Alabama that they and Saban have agreed on a contract extension. Shortly thereafter, it leaked that Brown appears to be staying at Texas for the time being.
247 Sports’ Bobby Burton reported the following:
BREAKING: Source tells me that Mack Brown, following mtg w school prez and AD, will remain coach of the Longhorns.
— Bobby Burton (@BobbyBurton247) December 14, 2013
ESPN added another key detail to the story. They say Brown was planning to resign, but he was so upset about the leaks about his plans that he changed his mind.
Here’s what they wrote:
Brown had previously confided in those close to him that he was resigning, the source said. However, Brown was “enraged” when the news leaked to the media, and he decided to change course, according to the source.
That makes plenty of sense. Who would want news like that to leak? People — especially legends like Brown — want to retire or resign on their own terms. If he agrees to step down, it won’t be a few days after the media has spoiled the announcement. He’ll do it at a later time.
This also sounds like Texas was pushing out Brown because they thought they had Saban. Now that they don’t, they have to go to their backup plan. So, for the interim, they can let Mack keep his job until they figure out what they want to do long term. You also can’t rule out the possibility that they make a run at Saban in the future depending on his buyout situation with the new extension.
