Winning 22 games in his two years with the Houston Cougars, Tom Herman was one of the hottest names on the head coaching market following the 2016 season.

Reportedly a strong candidate for the LSU Tigers job before it was given to Ed Orgeron on a full-time basis, Herman instead chose to sign a five-year/$28.75M contract with the Texas Longhorns and began acclimating himself to life in the Big 12 Conference.

While Herman’s 2019 Longhorns have clinched a bowl berth for the third consecutive season to begin his tenure, his teams have posted an underwhelming 23-15 record and are just 16-10 in conference play.

LSU, on the other hand, is flying high. Ranked No. 1 in the country, the Tigers will represent the West in the SEC Championship Game at Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta on December 7.

Seeing how the last three years have unfolded, many feel LSU came out on the upper hand of the deal. Count one prominent former Tigers defensive back – ESPN’s Ryan Clark – among that group:

Appearing in every game for LSU over the 1998-2001 seasons, Clark totaled eight interceptions during his time in Baton Rouge and started the final 36 games of his collegiate career.

Undrafted in 2002, he ended up playing 13 seasons in the National Football League with the New York Giants (2002-03), Washington Redskins (2004-05, 2014) and Pittsburgh Steelers (2006-13). A member of the Steelers’ Super Bowl XLIII champion team in 2008, Clark was named to the Pro Bowl in 2011.

Looking to put the finishing touches on a perfect regular season, LSU (11-0) hosts Texas A&M (7-4) on Saturday at 7:00PM ET on ESPN.

Hoping to finish above .500, Texas (6-5) welcomes in the Texas Tech Red Raiders (4-7) on Friday at 12:00PM ET on FOX.