Tom Herman is as sure of a thing as you are going to get from a Group of 5 coach. He has a knack for coaching strategy, gameplans, and offense that Strong does not have. Herman's coaching is almost a clone of Urban Meyer's: dominate field position, take advantage of mistakes and turnovers. and maneuver effectively in close games. To go along with Tom Herman's offensive knowledge is Todd Orlando, an outstanding defensive coordinator who understands how to deal with the players that he has. There are other benefits as well, such as Herman's ties to the state of Texas and UT and his ability to recruit. Herman also has a lot of confidence in his abilities and players, and players want to win for him. In his first year at UH, Herman mentioned that he was disappointed that fans were not showing up to the early games. He said that the team was working very hard, and he was certain that they would do well that season. They ended up beating Florida State in the Peach Bowl.
I've watched most of Houston's games, and I can tell you the UT fans upset about Navy have not been paying attention. That game was played in the wind and rain. UH has a weak offensive line, so they work around it by moving Ward out of the pocket so he can throw. However, the passing game was off for most of the game because of the remnants from Hurricane Matthew. Combined with Navy's disciplined rushing attack, and it was enough to push them over the top. Any criticism of Todd Orlando, the defensive coordinator, seems unfounded to me as well. While UH's rush defense struggled against Navy, it has still performed like one of the top rush defenses in the country. UH has also been able to scheme against potent and more talented offenses, as one can see with the games against Oklahoma and Florida State. The UH defense lost 1st round draft pick CB William Jackson III, LB Elandon Roberts (115 tackles), S Trevon Stewart (4 INTs), and S Adrian McDonald (4 INTs). Yet, the secondary has not missed a beat. Little-known CB Howard Wilson looks like a 1st team All-American.
I don't know for certain if Tom Herman can take Texas to the next level again, but the more I watch and compare the coaching at Texas and Houston, the more I side with Herman. Strong is deficient in areas where Herman is not. Herman continues to find ways to win; Strong continues to find new ways to lose. I don't see Texas winning 8 games. For one reason or another, Texas cannot play consistently in all three phases of the game. It just has not happened.
