Miami University in Oxford, Ohio, is nicknamed the “Cradle of Coaches” for producing legends like Woody Hayes, Bo Schembechler, Paul Brown, and other highly successful football coaches.
Now, it’s apparent that the NFL’s Houston Oilers were a crib for future HBCU coaches.
Texas Southern ended a long, circuitous search on Friday when it named Cris Dishman its new head football coach. He’ll see two familiar faces at the next coaches meeting in the Southwestern Athletic Conference: Prairie View A&M’s Bubba McDowell and Alabama State’s Eddie Robinson Jr.
Texas Southern’s wide receiver Trenton Leary (12) tries to avoid Jackson State’s linebacker Khalil Arrington (15) during the Nov. 4, 2023, game at the Mississippi Veterans Memorial Football Stadium in Jackson, Mississippi. Texas Southern has named Cris Dishman its new head coach. (Photo credit: Lauren Witte/USA Today Network)
The three coaches were teammates with the Oilers from the late 1980s to the mid-1990s. Another HBCU head football coach – Tennessee State’s Eddie George – was the Associated Press NFL Offensive Rookie of the Year with Houston in 1996, Dishman’s final season with the Oilers.
Dishman landed the job nearly two months after Texas Southern declined to renew the contract of former coach Clarence McKinney. TSU athletic director Kevin Granger reportedly tried to hire former Alcorn State coach Fred McNair but the Board of Regents didn’t approve, with some members preferring former Houston Texans wide receiver Andre Johnson, who withdrew from consideration on Thursday.
McNair, who won four SWAC East titles and twice reached the Celebration Bowl with Alcorn, was bypassed again in favor of Dishman, who gets his first head coaching job after 19 years as an assistant in college and the pros.
“I just thank God for the opportunity to be a head coach,” Dishman told KHOU. “I always dreamed about being a head coach. Now that day has arrived. I can’t wait to get started and see the guys.”
Dishman spent 13 years as a defensive back in the NFL after the Houston Oilers drafted him in 1988. Houston drafted McDowell, a safety, in 1989 and Robinson, a linebacker, in 1992. As members of the secondary, Dishman and McDowell spent plenty of time together.
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”Bubba and I have been friends for years,” Dishman said. “We’re going to compete with each other on and off the field, and we’re going to compete for recruits. I want all the players in Houston to stay in Houston.”
In a statement, Granger said Dishman’s experience as a player and coach made him an excellent choice. “Even more important, he is a man of character who, in his own words, ‘seeks to make his players into better brothers, fathers, and husbands,’” Granger said. “I appreciated the Board of Regents’ bold, strategic approach to finding new opportunities to elevate Texas Southern University.”
Dishman will have a heavy lift at TSU, which hasn’t posted a winning record since 2010. McKinney went 12-35 overall (9-26 in the SWAC), with his best season being 5-6 (2022).
Restoring TSU’s reputation is equally important after an embarrassing hiring process. Dishman is undaunted by the task and unbothered that he wasn’t the top choice.
“What’s for you, God’s going to make you have it,” he said. “There were some good candidates out there. Andre was out there. Fred McNair was out there. I just kept my head down and did what I could do and controlled what I can control. Whatever happened was gonna happen.
“God has a plan for your life. Maybe you’re last in the race, and then you become first in the race. I can’t worry about what tipped the scales and why. I’m just concentrating on being the best Texas Southern head coach and assembling a great staff.”
His former Oilers teammates can offer advice.
McDowell, hired in 2022, went 6-5 as a rookie and 6-6 last season. Robinson, who also began in 2022, went 6-5 his first year and improved to 7-4 last year. Eddie George posted his first winning record last season (6-5), his third year at Tennessee State.
Dishman said he plans to recruit at 30 area high schools in his first 30 days. But also has a message for Texas Southern players who are upset over the coaching uncertainty and making plans to leave.
“If you’re in the transfer portal, get out of the transfer portal,” he said. “Give myself and my staff a chance to do great things for you.”
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