“That Ain’t It”: Vic Schaefer Calls Out Longhorns’ Lack of Fight After Blowout Loss
When Vic Schaefer stepped to the podium after Texas’ 86-70 loss to Vanderbilt, he didn’t sugarcoat a thing. The veteran head coach, known for building programs that pride themselves on toughness and grit, was visibly shaken - not just by the scoreboard, but by what he saw on the court. Or more accurately, what he didn’t see.
“This is the first time at Texas I feel like my team got out-toughed,” Schaefer said. “They were more physical.
More aggressive. We whine, we complain...
We’re not tough.”
That’s not just frustration talking - that’s a coach holding up a mirror to his team and not liking the reflection.
From the opening tip, something was off. Texas came out flat, and Vanderbilt pounced.
By halftime, the Commodores had built a 17-point lead, and if there was any hope of a second-half surge, it never materialized. Five minutes into the third quarter, the deficit had ballooned to 25.
Schaefer had seen enough.
In a move that turned heads, he sat veteran point guard Rori Harmon for the final 15 minutes of the game. But Schaefer pushed back on the idea that it was a punitive benching. Instead, he pointed to the play of backup Bryanna Preston.
“It’s not benching,” he said. “If she doesn’t play on Sunday, you can come at me with benching. Once you put somebody in and they’re playing well, you don’t take them out.”
Preston brought energy, but the damage had already been done. The final score - a 16-point loss - didn’t fully capture the gap in effort and execution.
And Schaefer made it clear: this wasn’t about X’s and O’s. This was about heart.
“I’m fixing to go call my AD and tell him, ‘Man, I’m embarrassed. I’m sorry,’” he said. “That’s not the way you represent the University of Texas.”
The loss snapped a five-game win streak for the Longhorns, but for Schaefer, this wasn’t about a single game. This was the culmination of something deeper - a team that, in his eyes, isn’t living up to the standard that comes with wearing burnt orange.
“I can’t remember when I’ve been this embarrassed over the lack of heart,” he said.
And that’s saying something for a coach who’s made a career out of demanding - and getting - maximum effort. For Schaefer, effort isn’t a goal. It’s the starting point.
“This team is the softest team I’ve ever had,” he said. “I’ve had teams, all they got was a scholarship, and they laid it on the line.
I never had to coach their heart. Never.”
But on this night, that’s exactly what he found himself doing.
“I’m out there coaching heart tonight, y’all. That, ain’t it.”
There’s no stat for toughness. No box score column for grit.
But coaches know it when they see it - and just as clearly, when they don’t. For Schaefer, this wasn’t just a loss.
It was a wake-up call. And if Texas wants to get back to being the team that grinds opponents down and refuses to flinch, that call better be answered - fast.