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Believe it or not, it's been 16 years since former UT athletic director DeLoss Dodds first introduced Mack Brown as "the new football coach at The University of Texas".
Since his resignation in 2013, Brown and his family have maintained a relatively low profile. But now, after months of retweeting quotes from famous people and staying away from all things sports, Brown is set to return to college football as an ESPN analyst, according to NFL.com's Gil Brandt.
Mack Brown called me last night to tell me that he and John Saunders will be part of ESPN's pregame, halftime and wrap-up shows.
— Gil Brandt (@Gil_Brandt) July 9, 2014
Brown will be a part of ESPN's college football coverage on ABC this fall, possibly contradicting rumours that he would be asked to replace Lou Holtz on ESPN's College Gameday. Holtz, who announced he would be retiring after the 2014 season, took hilarious exception to criticism of Brown on an ESPN 'Final Verdict' segment.
During his career at Texas, Brown worked with many programs on the Longhorn Network, including pregame and postgame programs, All-Access segments, and various interviews. Brown has long been friendly with the media over the course of his coaching career, and received praise for his appearance on the NFL Network in 2010 as a draft analyst.
Mack Brown was informed and entertaining on NFL Network analyzing the draft in 2010. Just needs right role, right situation w/ESPN.
— Chuck Carlton (@ChuckCarltonDMN) June 2, 2014
Currently, Brown continues to receive paychecks from UT as part of a $2.75 million termination of buyout fee. KENS TV reported earlier that the ESPN announcing job would not impact his buyout.