And the denials have begun to flow out of Austin.
A report that a decision on Mack Brown‘s future would be decided in the next 48 hours was quickly trumped by a separate report that Brown had decided to step down as the head football coach at Texas.
The university, through a school official, has quickly denied the report. Citing a Texas source, Bruce Feldman of CBSSports.com tweeted that Brown “hasn’t had any meeting & has not told anyone he’s stepping down.”
Now, the coach himself, who is in Florida on a recruiting trip, has weighed in.
“I’m in Florida recruiting. If I had decided to step down I sure wouldn’t be killing myself down here,” Brown told 247Sports.com. “I have not decided to step down.”
Is it possible that the decision has already been made for Brown and he doesn’t know it yet? Certainly anything is possible, especially when it comes to the unique dynamic that is UT athletics and the myriad people who pull the strings in the state.
How unique? ESPN.com‘s Joe Schad wrote that "[t]he University of Texas Board of Regents has a critical meeting Thursday at which the future of President Bill Powers is to be discussed, which could affect the fate of Longhorns coach Mack Brown.”
As we wrote earlier, and to put these denials into perspective, Orangeblood.com‘s Chip Brown, who is reporting that Brown has decided to retire, reported back in mid-September that DeLoss Dodds would be stepping down as UT’s athletic director; the school and Dodds vehemently denied the report almost immediately. Two weeks later, Dodds announced he would be stepping down as UT’s athletic director.
In other words, take any denials coming from in and around the university without size grain of salt you deem necessary.