Why did Mack Brown leave Texas? Inside Tar Heels HC's decision to step down

Mack Brown was a staple at Austin for 15 years. From 1998 to 2013, Brown was the head coach of the Texas Longhorns of the University of Texas. He was successful in his time there, with the high point being the 2005 national title.

In his time at Austin, he also earned six Big 12 South Division titles, two Big 12 titles, and two Big 12 Coach of the Year awards.

91st Rose Bowl Game

For that reason, many were surprised when in 2013 the veteran coach decided to resign from his job with the Longhorns. At the time, Brown stated that:

"It's time for me to move on and let someone else come in and restart the program," Brown said. "This is a top-five program annually. It may be the best job in the country. You should be in the mix every year."

He also said that the level of football is not what it used to be earlier during his tenure:

"It's time for me to move on and let someone else come in and restart the program," Brown said. "This is a top-five program annually. It may be the best job in the country. You should be in the mix every year. It's time for Texas to get back in the mix like we were from '04 to '09. And that was a wonderful run, a lot of fun. We haven't lived up to those expectations since 2010."

The real reason for Mack Brown leaving Texas

The aforementioned statement is the official reason for him leaving the Austin school. On the other hand, according to Yahoo Sports, he was forced to resign from his position.

This version of events states that then newly minted athletic director Steve Patterson called Brown late in December 2013 to make him aware of the decision to let him go. Yahoo Sports added that the decision, however, was actually taken by university president Bill Powers.

A confidential source at the time told Yahoo Sports:

"Mack doesn't feel betrayed," the source said. "But I think [Powers] should have done it himself."

Apparently, since January 2013, Powers had been looking for a replacement for Mack Brown and even held discussions with Nick Saban. A confidential source at Texas at the time described the reason for the Mack Brown replacement as follows:

"He didn't win, and it's all about winning," a Texas source said. "If we'd beaten Baylor (Referring to that year's final loss), we wouldn't be having this conversation. But we didn't."