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Charlie Strong compares himself to former UF coach Ron Zook
By Andrew Olson
Published:
Texas coach Charlie Strong entered Friday with the potential to save his job with a win over TCU. Instead, the Longhorns fell to the Horned Frogs 31-9 at home.
The loss likely means Strong will be fired, and he fittingly compared himself to former Florida coach Ron Zook.
Charlie Strong acknowledged this: "The same thing happened to Zook."
— Max Olson (@max_olson) November 26, 2016
Charlie comparing himself to Ron Zook might be the most on-point thing he has ever said.
— Geoff Ketchum (@gkketch) November 26, 2016
As Zook’s defensive coordinator for the 2003 and 2004 seasons, Strong saw first-hand what it’s like to coach in an environment which the boosters are always ready to make a change. The two also coached together at UF under Steve Spurrier from 1991-94.
Zook was fired during the 2004 season. He stayed on to finish the regular season, but Strong assumed the interim role for the 2005 Peach Bowl.
It’s worth nothing that Zook went 23-14 at Florida and did not have a losing season. Texas has finished with a losing record all three years under Strong (6-7, 5-7, 5-7) and has only made it to one bowl game (2014 Texas Bowl).
Andrew writes about sports to fund his love of live music and collection of concert posters. He strongly endorses the Hall of Fame campaigns of Fred Taylor and Andruw Jones.