(670 The Score) Two months after being fired as Texas head coach, Tom Herman landed with the Bears for a new opportunity.
The Bears on Tuesday hired Herman as an offensive analyst/special projects. The Bears' hope is he can provide insight to the coaching staff while preparing himself for his next opportunity, perhaps in the NFL. Herman and Bears coach Nagy share the same agent, former Chicago defensive lineman Trace Armstrong, who helped link the two together.
Nagy envisions Herman assisting on his offensive staff and also providing insight for new Bears defensive coordinator Sean Desai, much in the same way Nagy believes newly hired senior defensive assistant Mike Pettine can share advice for both sides of the ball.
"He's never been a part of this," Nagy said, referencing Herman's long coaching history in the college ranks. "And I think just as much as he can help us out with similar things on offense like coach Pettine will for the defense, they can cross over. Tom Herman can be a help to Sean Desai and Pettine can be a help to us.
"Coach Herman gets to see what the NFL is all about. How do we game plan? How do we look at certain things? He brings the element of the college game too, whether it's in evaluating or whether it's schematically.
"We have guys that have no ego, and all we want to do is ultimately help. It's a win-win for everybody."
Herman, 45, was considered a rising star in the college coaching ranks after going a combined 22-4 at Houston in 2015-'16, after which he landed at Texas. He led the Longhorns to a 32-18 record across four seasons from 2017-'20. Texas was 7-3 in 2020 and capped its season with a victory in the Alamo Bowl.
Herman was unexpectedly fired by Texas on Jan. 2, and the school hired Alabama offensive coordinator Steve Sarkisian as its new head coach on the same day.
Herman will relocate to the Chicago area and be based out of Halas Hall while working in his new role with the Bears.
Chris Emma covers the Bears, Chicago’s sports scene and more for 670TheScore.com. Follow him on Twitter @CEmma670.