Being John Mackovic

Are you ready for football, world?

The American Football World Cup will take place in one of football’s hottest of beds, Japan. The event, in its third year, is organized by the International Federation of American Football (IFAF), which is based in another hotbed for American football, France. IFAF consists of 45 member nations, including good ol’ USA Football. The American entry to the cup will consist of players who have exhausted their college eligibility and have no chance of playing in the NFL. Somebody get Victor Young on the phone.

Eligibility rules seem fair enough. Could you imagine Ray Lewis hitting a 5’7” 140# Japanese wide receiver going over the middle? Vince McMahon probably could.

You may wonder, great, but what the hell does this have to do with Texas? Well, America’s team will be led by none other than wine connoisseur and former University of Texas head coach John Mackovic (1992-1997). Apparently Mackovic will replace former Virginia and Navy head coach George Welsh, who had to step down from the position after one month on the job. He sited “business opportunities,” as his reasoning. Uh huh. Can you say Hands-Free Car Wash?

"This is like a dream come true. I have always wanted to spread the game of football around the world," Mackovic said. "We intend to select outstanding young men from across our country to play on this first-ever United States National Team. While we will train and play to win every day, we also recognize the immense opportunity through football to make new alliances across the globe. We welcome the chance to play against other countries in a true world championship."

We hope Mackovic is more popular with his players than he was at UT or Arizona.

This oughta be “good.”

Thanks to the folks at Deadspin for the tip.