Hue Jackson lasted just two years as the head football coach at Grambling State University in Louisiana. The 58-year-old was fired earlier this week after going 8-14.
His ouster marked the third time that he has been fired as a head coach in under three years. It also happened with the Raiders and the Browns.
Although Grambling’s decision was a little bit of a surprise, considering that he won two more games in year two than in year one, mediocrity will not cut it for one of the most prominent Historically Black College and University programs. The university did not see a ton of momentum building around the program under Jackson so they relieved him of his duties after consecutive losses to rival Southern in the Bayou Classic.
Hue Jackson doesn’t understand.
Jackson disagrees with that assessment and claims that there was no path to success.
At the end of the day, people will only focus on the wins and losses. But I know for a fact […] we were turning that program back into the monster that we all wanted it to be. But that takes time.
— Hue Jackson
In his eyes, Grambling did not give him the necessary time. They pulled the trigger too fast. He then proceeded to echo sentiments previously shared by Deion Sanders and Ed Reed, and painted a grim picture of HBCU football as a whole during an interview with Offscript.
His belief is that football programs like Grambling cannot realistically prosper in their current state. They don’t have adequate funding or infrastructure in place to properly support student-athletes.
The lack of transparency, coordination, and collaboration will continue, in my opinion, to plague the HBCUs. We all know those things are issues and have to be dealt with.
— Hue Jackson
Prior to his time in The Boot, Jackson spent one season as the offensive coordinator at Tennessee State under Eddie George. The two-year stint with the Tigers was not his first experience with HBCU football, after working his way up through the collegiate ranks in the 1990s and the NFL ranks in the 2000s.
Jackson thinks that Grambling should have allowed him at least three years. He feels as though the university cut him loose too soon.
You have to give it three years when you come in the first year. You don’t want to walk in and run all the players at it. I’m not just talking about Grambling but about any place. You need to make sure you understand the lay of the land. And I would have felt though it was warranted (to be fired) if this year looked like the first year.
This year, you can see the turning of the program, the culture was starting to change. The wins came a little bit more. You can see that the building blocks were there, and next year’s team, to me, with everybody returning, it was going to be the best offense in the conference and one of the better defenses in the conference. It was really going to take off.
— Hue Jackson
As for why he was fired, Jackson is unsure. No explanation was provided, apparently.
They probably didn’t think the progress was happening fast enough. They are going to make their choices and decisions. You’re not going to fight those things. That is their decision.
— Hue Jackson
Jackson does not want his career to end. He is open to coaching at another program, including an HBCU, if presented with an opportunity. It’s “what he does.”