Former Houston Texans star Andre Johnson has withdrawn his name from consideration for becoming the head football coach at Texas Southern. Per Jerome Solomon of the Houston Chronicle, Johnson was interested in taking on the position but sources said he, “understands how important the history of HBCU and TSU football is, and he didn’t want to cause a divide between the voices in the program”.

Johnson's interest in the position at Texas Southern became known publicly in November. Solomon spoke with Johnson about his coaching future, in which he said, “I just let things play out…wouldn’t ever say no. If something came across the table that made sense, I would consider it.”

Solomon's recent report reveals that Johnson had contacted Texas Southern expressing his interest in becoming the head coach a year ago. Unfortunately, he did not receive a response from the school until news of his interest started to circulate. Texas Southern also considered Fred McNair, the former coach of Alcorn, for the coaching position. However, the Texas Southern Board of Regents held a special meeting on Dec. 15 to discuss the contract details for McNair but were unable to reach an agreement on a four-year, $313,000 contract.

The Texas Southern coaching search has continued with no conceivable end in sight. Pro Football Hall of Famer Ed Reed expressed his interest on his Twitter/X page and Pittsburgh Steelers great & former Super Bowl MVP Hines Ward was also rumored to be a contender for the position, according to a report by Dave Campbell’s Texas Football.

Texas Southern had a challenging season, losing star quarterback Andrew Body to a season-ending injury. Despite promising moments against Florida A&M, dominating Alcorn State, and putting up a fight against Jackson State and Southern, the Tigers athletics administration chose not to renew head coach Clarence McKinney's contract. The team finished with a 3-8 record.

The next hire will be tasked with turning around the program and building a contender in a SWAC West that has seen major coaching changes at perennial contenders Southern, Grambling, and Alcorn.