Charlie Strong is his own man. The new head coach of Texas football trail-blazed through obstacle-ridden forests and privation to create his own path to success. And after 31 years of college football coaching experience, Strong is now at the helm of one of the most prestigious programs in the nation. Something he worked long and hard to achieve.[s2If current_user_can(access_s2member_level2)]
During Strong’s introductory press conference, no quote was more telling of Strong than when he spoke about a conversation he had with Mack Brown.
“Don’t try to be like me,” Strong said, quoting Brown. “You are who you are, so just try to be you.”
Strong, born and raised in Arkansas, graduated from the University of Central Arkansas where he lettered as a linebacker for the Bears’ football team. The Bears won the Southland conference championship in three of the four years Strong played, and was part of a team that paved the way for their 1984 FCS National Championship. So, it’s safe to assume Strong’s winning pedigree began early in his football career.
Following his playing career, success seemed to follow Strong wherever he went. After graduating, Strong gravitated toward coaching and became a graduate assistant at the University of Florida in 1984. That Gator squad went 9-1-1 and finished third in the final AP Poll. Strong then proceeded to become a graduate assistant at Texas A&M, a team that finished 10-2 and won the Southwest Conference Championship and Cotton Bowl (they also wiped the deck with Texas 42-10).
Strong’s first full-time coaching gig came in 1986, when he became the wide receivers coach at Southern Illinois. That Southern Illinois team, who the previous two seasons went a combined 7-15, finished 7-4 in 1986. But, as is the norm in the coaching world, coaches have a short shelf life at most schools. And when the head coach leaves, so does his entire staff.
After one more season at Southern Illinois, Strong returned to Florida and became the Linebackers coach for two seasons and followed that with a season at Ole Miss. Despite spending a year with the Rebels, Strong returned to Florida where he assumed duties as the defensive tackle coach.
In 1995 Strong headed to Notre Dame where he became the defensive end and defensive tackle coach. There, Strong coached under the great Lou Holtz, arriving at the tail-end of his great run with Notre Dame. Following those two seasons, Strong became the defensive tackle coach under Bob Davie, who had a notorious up-and-down tenure with the Irish.
(NOTE: Strong has a history of defeating Texas. Just like he did with A&M in 1985, the ’95 Irish squad defeated Texas 55-27 and the following year defeated Texas 27-24 in a classic. That ’96 Texas squad went on to shock Nebraska in the first year of the Big 12 Conference Championship game. Charlie Strong: 3, Texas: 0)
Following Notre Dame, Strong followed his previous coach, Holtz, to South Carolina where he received the prestigious position of defensive coordinator. One cannot understate the importance of a defensive coordinator. A DC is in charge of one half of the game and can take a great deal of blame and criticism for losses. The DC is also a key stepping stone to becoming a head coach, and after spending 15 years in successful yet subordinate roles, Strong was finally getting his due.
Strong would spend ten years as defensive coordinator for two separate schools. At Florida, Strong was the only coach who survived the massive coaching turnover when Urban Meyer took over the program in 2005. Under Meyer, Florida won two National Championships, and this was in no small part thanks to Strong’s defensive schemes. In the 2008 National Championship game, Florida kept a high-powered Oklahoma offense to only 14 points.
Following this success, Louisville gave Strong a well-deserved opportunity to become head coach of the Cardinals.
Louisville struggled in the years leading up to Strong’s hire. The Cardinals went a combined 2-12 in conference play the two years before Strong took over in 2010, and had not been to a bowl game since their 2006 Orange Bowl victory over Wake Forest.
Louisville felt Strong’s impact almost immediately. In his first year as head coach, the Cardinals defeated Southern Miss 31-28 in the Beef’O’Brady’s Bowl. The following season, Louisville went 5-2 in conference play and became conference co-champions after upsets over West Virginia and Rutgers. Despite the loss to North Carolina State in the Belk Bowl, this was Louisville’s first conference championship season since 2006.
2012 would mark Strong’s most memorable year as a head coach and is considered by many to be Louisville’s greatest season. Louisville went undefeated through the first nine games of the season. Granted, the Cardinals dodged some bullets and thanked God for a few near-misses, but the Cardinals climbed to No. 9 in the AP Poll. Then came two devastating losses in a row, first a blow out at the hands of Syracuse, followed by a triple-overtime loss to Connecticut. Nonetheless, Louisville bounced back to defeat Rutgers in their final game and secure a date with Florida in the Sugar Bowl.
Louisville went on to upset No. 4 Florida 33-23 and claim their second BCS Bowl title. Since taking down the school that gave him his start, Strong has been regarded as one of the best motivators and coaches in college football.
This season, Louisville lost only one game, a heart-breaking 38-35 loss to eventual Conference Champions, and Fiesta Bowl Champions, Central Florida, and pummeled Miami 36-9 in the Citrus Bowl.
Though known more for basketball, Strong put Louisville’s football program back on the map, and the program will undoubtedly feel Strong’s benefits long after he leaves.
But Texas is where the second half of this coach’s coach journey continues. If it’s as good as the first half, we are all in for a treat.
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