"It's twofold": When Steve Sarkisian revealed how he tailored his strategy to play in new conference

Modified Apr 06, 2025 21:22 GMT

Syndication: Austin American-Statesman - Source: Imagn

Texas Longhorns coach Steve Sarkisian has led a revival in the program during his tenure. Under him, the Longhorns have made back-to-back College Football Playoff semifinals and have been in the conversation for the national championship. This is expected to continue into the 2025 season.

However, Sarkisian was the coach of the Longhorns when they made the massive move of conferences, going from the Big 12 to the SEC.

In August 2023, the season before the Longhorns made the move to the SEC, Sarkisian spoke with Chris Long about what he had been doing to prepare his team for the new conference.

"I think it's twofold," Sarkisian said (Timestamp: 18:40). "I think it's both. It's recruiting and what we're doing on the field. ... I came to Texas to win championships. I want to come here, and I want to compete and I want to win national championships, all right.

"To do that, you're going to have to beat Alabama. You're going to have to beat Georgia. ... I was already building a roster that could compete with those guys. I mean, in my mind, I'm like, we have to build a roster that can not only win the Big 12 but that can go beat those teams in the College Football Playoff ."

Making improvements to both areas was an aim for Sarkisian when he joined the Longhorns program to win the Big 12 and also compete with the likes of Alabama, Georgia and Clemson.

How did Steve Sarkisian and Texas fare in their first season in the SEC?

Steve Sarkisian and the Longhorns arrived in the SEC for the 2024 season on a high. They won the 2023 Big 12 championship and made the CFP, losing to the Washington Huskies.

Now, with a similar roster to their previous season, Texas looked to upset the existing order in the SEC, and the Longhorns did. In their first season in the conference, the Longhorns were nearly undefeated, only losing one conference game to the Georgia Bulldogs. The pair met again in the SEC Championship Game, which was again won by the Bulldogs.

Despite the defeats, the Longhorns were one of the SEC's strongest teams.

With talents such as Arch Manning, CJ Baxter and Michael Taaffe on the roster, Texas is trying to remain at the top of college football for the next few seasons.

About the author

Ben Tredinnick is a journalist who covers college football and college basketball at Sportskeeda who is currently studying for a masters in Data Science. His degree in Psychology has helped him gain an in-depth understanding of the minds of coaches.

Ben has been involved in sports writing since 2022 and covered the NFL previously. His strengths include providing in-depth profiles of athletes and coaches, with a particular focus on development, and looking at which teams could be in the hunt for today's college stars.

Ben enjoys following college sports more than the NBA or NFL because there is more variation in terms of playstyles. The tournaments are often more competitive than the major leagues, and due to the constant turnover of players, there are rarely any "superteams" in college sports.

He prioritizes research, looks at multiple sources and publications to make sure he gets the full picture of the story before writing. He tries not to write from a one-sided perspective to allow the reader to be able to make their mind up on their own.

A Texas Longhorns fan, as well as a massive New York Giants fan, some of his favorite college players of all time are Arch Manning, Tim Tebow and Reggie Bush.

When he is not working, Ben enjoys watching films (especially Godzilla) and spending time with his cat.

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Edited by Joseph Schiefelbein