By Annie Moore
Less than a week after losing its starting quarterback, the University of Louisville football program took another big hit on Saturday. Head Football Coach Charlie Strong accepted an offer to become the Head Coach at the University of Texas.
After much media speculation Friday night and all day Saturday, Strong officially accepted the offer Saturday night. Strong spoke with Louisville athletic director Tom Jurich following a staff meeting Saturday morning before making the commitment official. It was reportedly important to Strong to speak to Jurich before the announcement was made.
Before Coach Strong’s arrival, Louisville had three-consecutive losing seasons. Strong was 37-15 in his four years at Louisville, including three bowl wins and two consecutive double-digit win seasons.
Strong’s $3.7 million base salary at Louisville made him one of the top ten highest-paid college football coaches in the country.
Strong is the third big name to announce his departure from Louisville in the past week. Quarterback Teddy Bridgewater and Safety Calvin Pryor both announced earlier in the week that they would enter the 2014 National Football League draft.
Despite his desire to meet with Jurich before making it official, Strong neglected to hold a meeting with the team. Many players found out their coach was leaving through social media and television reports.
This is an ongoing story, the Louisville Cardinal will monitor and provide updates as they become available.
