Horns247 Board

I understand why he bailed out and can't blame him a whole lot, but it sucks nevertheless.

wait, Jerry Gray coached at Texas?

What a gut punch. F him.

Texas was going to give him a chance....too bad he couldn't do the same.

I agree with you, but Mack said what he needed to say. I'd be embarrassed if Mack said anything else.

I know you knew that already, just venting...

Wow, I can't understand all the hate for Jerry Gray. When any of you guys are willing to turn down triple your salary, then you can say something. Otherwise, you should shut up because the man took another job. There's not another person on this board that would have done differently if they'd have been in the same situation.

Unfortunately, yes they are.

Everyone has the right to an opinion, but when the opinion has no expertise to back it up, it becomes questionable.

Too many to count visceral, negative comments based on box scores. If the DC gives up too many yards/points, he is and idiot. Vice versa for OC.

If you read the boards for some years, Akina has went from genius to idiot more times than I can count.

Read the during game comments, or someone like Ketch's, "The grades are in" stuff. Ketch gave Muschamp C's or less more than half the games, yet when he left he claimed he was the best DC in the history of Texas football.

Knee jerk reactions by unknowledgeable people are the dominant efforts on the internet. Put it this way, would you accept the opinion of a lawyer who has never taken a course in law? A mechanic who has never held a wrench?

But the sole expertise of most is an internet connection and an Madden Xbox game. They can argue all they want, but simply present the facts and the basis for their expertise.

Game, set, match.

It is not that I am pissed or upset with Jerry it is just I understand the reality that this decision makes it impossible to come back to Texas in any capacity. At least one major donor I talked to said this is the end of Gray and Texas. That's disappointing to me. It would be like Major leaving for Florida under those circumstances in December. It would be really hard if not impossible for him to have rejoined Texas.

If staying in the NFL was his main choice, why did he leave Seattle? Just so many head scratching facts about this one. It also makes an already hard job (recruiting for 2012) that much harder. He is leaving Texas in a really tough spot.

My brother has known Jerry since they played together back in the 80s. He is a class guy and although I wish he were here, that is too much money to pass up.

Good luck Jerry

With all due respect, I would have not done the same thing. I for one would not have left the NFL with the type of salary he was bringing in (and could have increased) to take a position with my alma mater for less money, while accepting a position that many felt he was overqualified for, call it a "dream job" in my press conference and then accept a position three weeks later with another team in the NFL. I can't believe there are some who are willing to give him a pass on that. It's not about the job or the opportunity and apparently, it surely wasn’t about the money. Jerry Gray wasn't going to lose out on any of those. It's about what he sold to Mack in order to get him here in the first place. Jerry's not ignorant. He knows what it means to have turmoil and uncertainty within the college ranks. Its effects on the fan base, recruiting, and the players are all pieced together and he accepted to take on that challenge when he signed on to coach here. This wasn't just any position. It was a job that he wanted and it was an opportunity for him to come back home to his University. He stated as much in his press conference, talking about the communication he had with Mack during the past season. He said all the right things in that Press Conference about how he couldn't believe he was wearing the burnt orange again and that he almost had to "pinch himself" to believe that he was here. I don't know about anyone else, but I came away feeling pretty damn good about his future here. It's hard to view a situation like this and not get angry folks. Are we going to move on? Of course. Mack will find a good coach and will be fine. This is not a "the world has ended because Jerry Gray left" rant. It is about the manner in which he decided to leave that has many on this board so burned up.

He took the first opportunity he got and bailed for a position that he has already held within the NFL. Nevermind the uncertainty there right now or what team he actually chose to call home? That is definitely up for debate too. Why do I raise the point about his previous position as DC? Because if you look at the transformation of events that have just transpired over the past month, you will see that this move is really nothing new for Jerry. If he was pissed about taking what he thought was a lesser position role here, then he shouldn’t have accepted in the first place. Stay in the NFL and wait for your opportunity. At least that would have been the honest approach. You can’t help but doubt and feel frustrated about what just happened in a matter of weeks here. It's hard not to want to question this as anything but normal. Does he have a right to leave? Sure he does! Does it have to make sense for me or anyone else? No, because I'm not him and I don't know what was going through his mind when he made it, however for some to state on this board that anyone individual would do the same thing if they were in his shoes is not true. Maybe I look at commitment and character a bit more differently than others, but to me, if I had done what he had done (taken less money and accepted the role as is) in order to get back to my alma mater (that dream job) and be a part of that coaching staff, I certainly would not have left at the first opportunity to go back to where I came from. I would have honored that commitment with the understanding that others would be coming down the road. Jerry definitely had a right to look out for his own interests, but ironically that was the problem here and Jerry showed that those trumped everything else in the end. Unfortunately, as good as that burnt orange felt three weeks prior to this decision, it quickly faded at the sight of another opportunity. The idea of looking out for one ’s self before others is true in many instances, but in the coaching profession that only goes so far. Certainty means a hell of a lot more in the college ranks than it does in the NFL. In the case of Jerry Gray, I think he forgot that part of college sports. No matter what people want to believe, his days of press conferences in front of a UT podium are over and they should be. Only Jerry can thank himself and his ambitions for that. After all, those were more important in the final outcome. In the end..he's right where he needs to be...he belongs in the NFL!