A day with Mack Brown: A future for football in Middle East

Jay Asser 10:52 27/08/2015
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  • Legendary status: Mack Brown.

    The UAE’s sporting landscape still has plenty of uncovered potential. As the nation grows in infrastructure and population, sport continues to be on the rise. Even American football.

    Former University of Texas football coach Mack Brown recognises that opportunity to increase the game’s reach internationally.

    Brown, along with former Longhorns players David Thomas and Ricky Brown, took a trip to Dubai in April in a representative role for the university to explore possibilities to expand Texas’ brand in the Middle East.

    The 63-year-old coaching legend is known for restoring Texas to glory by leading the programme to a national championship in the 2006 Rose Bowl.

    He was awarded the Paul ‘Bear’ Bryant Award for Coach of the Year and finished his successful coaching career with a 244-122 record.

    Brown, now a college football analyst for ESPN and ABC, spoke with Sport360° about his time in Dubai, the local Emirates American Football League and what it will take to grow the game away from home.

    What brought you to Dubai in a capacity for Texas University?

    We have a new athletic director, his name is Steve Patterson, and he was the general manager of some pro basketball teams. When he was with the Houston Rockets, he had Yao Ming and China became a country that really supported the NBA.

    Steve thinks Texas can have an international brand, so he’s playing a basketball game in China.

    Leader: brown.

    He wanted us to come and explore the possible opportunities in Dubai and Abu Dhabi and he also wants to have a presence in Mexico.

    So really, more than anything else, we’re here to meet the people, we’re here to talk to different people in positions of authority and ask them their opinion of what Texas could bring to this region and what type of opportunities are here for Texas to increase their brand, but also for Texas to give back to this area.

    How much promise have you seen so far?

    Number one, it’s just such an amazing place. We talk about at Texas what happens there changes the world. This place is changing the world. When you can get to two-thirds of the world in eight hours from here, obviously this is a hub. It’s obviously a unique city in that you’ve got, I was told, 408 different nationalities within the city.

    So that means there’s opportunities for people from outside of the country to come here and make things happen.

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    It’s a city that seems very open to new ideas and change and it’s a young a city and I think it’s a model city for all of us. As much as anything, we’ve all learned some things that we can take back to Austin, Texas, that will help our city get better.

    What have been your impressions of the EAFL and how they’re trying to develop the sport here?

    I think it’s very unique because football isn’t the common sport in this country. For these guys to have started with 12 players five or six years ago and now they’re in the 100s and have great support, I think they’re well on track.

    To have people from outside coming in and talking to the young people about American football, it’s exciting for us because we want to expand American football to the globe. I think what the EAFL are doing is right. You play, you have championships, you have competition.

    How can football become a global game?

    When you study youth sports across America, there’s a higher rate of graduation, there’s a more confident person, male and female, that’s competing in sports.

    So the advantage that you get in any sport is great because you have something to look forward to, you have more accountability, you have goals, you have dreams.

    I think that football just gives some kids that maybe don’t want to play soccer or cricket or baseball or don’t want to run track just another opportunity to do something special.

    It’s so unique for some of these young people who’ve never even seen the game to come out and learn to play. It’s a fun project for the guys in the EAFL and they’re doing a good job with it.

    Are concussions a significant hurdle that hold back the growth of football outside America?

    It’s interesting, I was the president of the American Football Coaches Association last year and there’s more concussions in soccer than there are in football.

    There’s more concussions in bike riding than there is in football. Football has really been beaten up over concussions and it’s an issue. I’m sure rugby has concussions, I’m sure cricket has concussions, you have car wrecks that have concussions, we can walk and fall and have concussions.

    So concussions are an issue, but not just for American football. They’re an issue for all of us. What we’ve got to do is continue to love our wonderful games and always continue to try to improve the safety of each student athlete.

    How do you think Charlie Strong has done so far since taking over as head coach for Texas football?

    He’s just got there and he’s just gotten started. One thing I’ve tried to do is stay out of coach Strong’s way. I said I went into the witness protection programme and went underground until I got to ESPN. But I’ve tried to help coach Strong anytime he’s called me.

    Anytime you’re going through a transition, it’s tough. You’ve got to learn the players, they’ve got to learn you, you’ve got to learn the plays. He did a great job at Louisville, he’ll do a great job at Texas in time.

    How much do you miss coaching?

    I do miss parts of it, but there are parts I don’t miss. If the right opportunities came back and it really excited me for a challenge, I would go back and coach. But ESPN and ABC have been so good to me and I have a really good job right now.

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