Commentary

Texas Longhorns' turnaround plan

An offensive revival and Bear Bryant blueprint could key a bounce-back year for UT

Originally Published: February 22, 2011

By KC Joyner | ESPN Insider

Considering the way Texas Longhorns coach Mack Brown handled his team's offseason changes, one cannot help but wonder if the autobiography of legendary Alabama Crimson Tide coach Paul "Bear" Bryant was on Brown's offseason reading list.

Bryant's memoir offers plenty of insights that could easily serve as advice to a coach looking to get his program back to its previously lofty heights. The most relevant example for Brown, who is trying to lead his team to a bounce-back year after finishing 5-7 in 2010, is how Bryant handled his team's falloff from 1967 to 1970.

After dominating for most of the 1960s, the Crimson Tide posted a 28-15-2 record in that four-year period. The 15 losses were more than Bryant's Alabama squads had suffered in the rest of his tenure in Tuscaloosa, and he knew he had to do something to turn the tide.

Bryant's solution: a three-pronged approach that Brown may have used as a blueprint this offseason. The result for Texas could end up being a much-improved offensive attack that spurs a bounce-back season for the Longhorns in 2011.

To read more about why the Texas Longhorns could be in for a significant offensive turnaround in 2011, become an ESPN Insider today.