Watch: Former Texas HC Mack Brown once delivered fiery speech after Longhorns' 2005 national championship triumph
The Texas Longhorns won the 2005 national championship game against the USC Trojans under the guidance of former head coach Mack Brown. It was the team's fourth national championship win, which along the way ended South California's 34-game winning streak and stopped them from winning their third straight national championship title.
After the game, Brown was seen talking to the players on the team. He gave a motivational speech to his players, telling them that their lives should have more meaning than just winning a national championship:
"I don't want this to be the best thing that's ever happened in your life. When you're 54, I don't want you to say. 'Winning a football game is the best thing that's ever happened in my life.' You'll have it and you'll be a champion for the rest of your life," Brown said.
"You make sure that's one of the best sports things in your life. But you promise me, if you got enough about you to win a national championship, you got enough about you to be a great citizen, to be a great rolemodel, a great father, and a great leader in your family. And that's what we're looking for when you get out of here."
Watch a clip of Mack Brown's speech here:
How Mack Brown sped up Longhorns' recruiting process during 16-season tenure
When Brown was the head coach at North Carolina, he started the tradition of junior day because he noticed that Big Ten programs offered elite local prospects before UNC could. Then, when he came to Texas in 1998, he realized that the recruiting speed was slower, that junior days weren't common and that scholarships were reserved for seniors.
Mack Brown hosted his first junior day at Texas in 2004. The Longhorns had successfully locked in 17 commits for 2006:
“Mack Brown used to offer 21 guys and get 21 commits,” former Texas Tech assistant at the time Sonny Dykes said, as per The Athletic. “Before long, you were just trying to keep up with the Joneses.”
A typical junior day consisted of a campus tour, question-and-answer sessions with Texas players, meetings with coaches and a face-to-face interaction with Brown. Despite bagging a large number of commits, Brown and the Longhorns did not scatter scholarships on a whim. He was analytical and asked several questions of the recruits before making any calls.
In 2006, Texas' junior day attracted 10 of the state's top 15 recruits for the 2007 class, resulting in seven commitments. From 2007 to 2010, Texas secured 40 commitments from junior day attendees, with a record 13 in 2010. On signing day in 2007, Texas hosted 28 prospects, 25 of whom signed after committing.
Mack Brown's Texas career ended in 2013 with a 158-48 record.