HOUSTON, TX – SEPTEMBER 10: Houston Cougars head coach Tom Herman walks the sidelines as he coaches against the Lamar Cardinals in the second quarter at TDECU Stadium on September 10, 2016 in Houston, Texas. Houston won 42 to 0. (Photo by Thomas B. Shea/Getty Images)

When Houston football coach Tom Herman took a job at Texas last month, the Longhorns were on the hook for his $2.5 million buy-out. But when Texas went to pay Houston the money it owed for sniping the Cougars’ coach, Houston athletic director Hunter Yurachek had another idea: How about a basketball and football home-and-home between the two programs?

Texas’ response: No thanks, we’ll just cut the check.

Here’s what Yurachek told reporters Monday about his conversations with Texas athletic director Mike Perrin.

Texas has deals in place to take on USC and LSU in upcoming football seasons, along with cupcakes like Louisiana Tech, Rice and Tulsa. Apparently the Longhorns didn’t another tough game on their schedule.

Of course, Texas has a right to pay Houston the buy-out and stay as far away from a dangerous Cougars team as possible, but that sure isn’t very fun. Herman coaching against his old school, undoubtedly out for revenge, would have been a fun storyline. With Texas and Texas Tech in ruts and Texas A&M somewhat inconsistent, Houston has been easily the best college football team in Texas the past few years, and it would have been exciting to see the Cougars match up against their bigger, wealthier brothers to the west.

Here’s how Longhorns blog Burnt Orange Nation defends its school’s no-fun decision.

However, Texas already has most of its future non-conference schedule in place over the coming years and playing an early-season road game against a good opponent from a non-Power Five conference doesn’t have much upside.

And the last time the ‘Horns played the Cougars in Houston, inspections revealed that 4,150 temporary bleacher seats installed for the game were unsafe for fans. Texas had asked for extra tickets for the game and requested a change in venue following the decrease in seating capacity, but Houston refused.

Those with long memories in the Texas administration likely haven’t forgotten.

So Houston won’t have the opportunity to increase its the prestige of its football and basketball programs at the expense of Texas.

You can decide whether or not they sound scared.

About Alex Putterman

Alex is a writer and editor for The Comeback and Awful Announcing. He has written for The Atlantic, VICE Sports, MLB.com, SI.com and more. He is a proud alum of Northwestern University and The Daily Northwestern. You can find him on Twitter @AlexPutterman.