“That’s why we are here”: Steve Sarkisian undeterred by the Arch Manning hype as he sets clear goals for 2025 season

Steve Sarkisian has a clear objective for the Texas Longhorns: win the national title. His main reason for accepting the coaching gig with the program was that he believed the Longhorns would give him the resources he needed to succeed.

On "The Herd with Colin Cowherd" on Thursday, Sarkisian explained that he went back to being a coach because he wanted to win a national title and that he accepted Texas' offer because he thinks they have what it takes to win one.

"That's why we are here, right?" Sarkisian said (12:55). "I mean, Colin, you know me well enough to know over the years, I had plenty of opportunities to be a head coach again, and when this job was presented to me, I didn't take this job just to say I was a head coach. I came here because I believed we could be champions. Conference champions, national champions and that's the standard here and that's what we are competing for."

Sarkisian's first head coaching position was with Washington from 2009 to 2013. He was also USC's coach from 2014 to 2015 and joined Alabama for a season as an analyst, which was followed by a two-season stint as the offensive coordinator of the Atlanta Falcons in the NFL. He went back to Alabama as an offensive coordinator for two seasons before taking the coaching gig at Texas ahead of the 2021 campaign.

Steve Sarkisian believes Quinn Ewers will succeed in the NFL

Steve Sarkisian also talked about why he believes former Texas quarterback Quinn Ewers be successful in the NFL. According to him, it has all to do with the environment of college football in Texas.

"There's about 1.5 million people in the city of Austin, with no pro sports, the microscope you're under, the scrutiny you're under, the media coverage, the national media coverage, the brand, and the having to be your best under that gets you ready for the NFL where you're not as consumed with what other people think," Sarkisian said on Thursday, via 'The Herd with Colin Cowherd.' "There's not a throw that guy can't make."

Ewers decided to forgo his final year of college eligibility, knowing if that he stayed, he would probably have to search for a new program given that Arch Manning would likely take over the starting position. He is projected as a fifth-round pick by many NFL analysts.