One of the nation’s premier coaches who has steadfastly returned the Texas football program back to prominence,
Steve Sarkisian is in his 24th year of coaching and 11th as a head coach. Entering his fourth season at Texas, his Longhorn rebuild has been a patient and deliberate one. Sarkisian’s process and efforts included a steady growth of on-field results through player development and recruiting, combined with a strong team culture, both of which has positioned the program for continued long-term success. The Longhorns finished 5-7 in 2021, improved to 8-5 with an Alamo Bowl bid in 2022, before turning in a historic season in 2023 with a 12-2 record, Big 12 Championship, No. 3 final ranking and College Football Playoff semifinal appearance. Sarkisian has also turned in top-5 recruiting classes the past three years. He enters 2024 with a 25-14 record in three seasons at Texas and 71-49 mark in 10 seasons as a head coach, with seven of his teams earning bowl bids.
A former All-American quarterback at BYU whose coaching career includes six years as an offensive coordinator at both the NFL and collegiate levels, Sarkisian was the 2020 Broyles Award winner (best assistant coach in college football) as offensive coordinator at Alabama. The former head coach at USC and Washington, he was named the 31st Head Football Coach at The University of Texas on January 2, 2021.
The 2023 season had Texas Football attain heights not seen on the Forty Acres in over a decade. Sarkisian was named a finalist for the Bear Bryant, George Munger and Eddie Robinson Coach of the Year awards after leading the Longhorns to their first Big 12 Championship since 2009, winning 12 games for the first time since that season and reaching the College Football Playoff for the first time in program history. The 12 wins marked just the fourth time in school history that the Longhorns had 12 or more victories in a season. He was also tabbed the Big 12 Coach of the Year by The Associated Press. Texas earned a No. 3 final ranking in The Associated Press Poll, its highest finish in 15 years since earning the No. 2 spot in 2009. The Longhorns were one of only five Power-5 programs that ranked among the top 15 in scoring offense (35.8 ppg) and scoring defense (18.9 ppg), finishing 15th nationally in both. Sarkisian’s versatile and balanced squad ranked ninth nationally in total offense (477.5 ypg), led the Big 12 in total defense (336.7 ypg/34th FBS) and was bolstered by one of the nation’s top special team’s units. Led by Outland Trophy winner and unanimous first-team All-American defensive tackle T’Vondre Sweat, Texas ranked third nationally in rushing defense (82.4 ypg). The Longhorns’ ground game, which was led by Earl Campbell Tyler Rose Award finalist Jonathon Brooks’ 1,139 yards in 11 games, and three total backs with 100-yard rushing games, ranked 24th in the FBS (188.4 ypg). Texas averaged 289.1 yards per game passing (17th/FBS). Seven Longhorns earned first-team All-Big 12 honors with Sweat voted the league’s defensive player of the year, defensive tackle Byron Murphy II selected defensive lineman of the year, wide receiver Adonai Mitchell chosen offensive newcomer of the year, and linebacker Anthony Hill Jr. tabbed defensive freshman of the year. The Longhorns had 11 players invited to the NFL Combine in February 2024, the most ever in program history.
In 2022, Sarkisian guided Texas to an 8-5 record with all five defeats coming by seven points or fewer, and it is just the second time in the last nine years the Longhorns reached eight wins in the regular season. Meanwhile, this past season’s trip to the Valero Alamo Bowl marks the sixth bowl game Sarkisian has led his teams to in nine completed seasons as a head coach. The 2022 Longhorns featured a balanced attack that averaged 34.5 points per game (25th FBS) and allowed just 21.6 points per game (28th FBS). Running back Bijan Robinson won the Doak Walker Award and earned first-team All-America honors after leading the nation in tandem yards during the regular season with 1,894 (1,580 rushing, 314 receiving) and ranking second in total touchdowns (20), while averaging a Big 12-best 131.7 rushing yards and 157.83 all-purpose yards per game. Robinson was also a first-team All-Big 12 selection and was joined in that honor by tight end Ja’Tavion Sanders and linebackers Jaylan Ford and DeMarvion Overshown. A three-time Big 12 Defensive Player of the Week honoree in 2022, Ford was second in the Big 12 in tackles (119; 9.2 tpg). His four interceptions were tied for the UT linebacker record and were the most among FBS linebackers this year. He was also the only Power 5 player with four interceptions and three forced fumbles, and the only FBS player with four interceptions, three forced fumbles and two fumble recoveries. Additionally, wide receiver Xavier Worthy, true freshman offensive lineman Kelvin Banks Jr. and defensive lineman Keondre Coburn earned second-team All-Big 12 accolades, as a total of 20 Longhorns received all-conference recognition. After having no players selected in the 2022 NFL Draft, five of Sarkisian’s Longhrons were selected after his second season with the program.
Year one had its ups and downs as the Longhorns dealt with inconsistency, injuries and adversity in a 5-7 campaign. Texas opened and closed the 2021 season with big victories as the Sarkisian era began with a 38-18 victory over No. 23 Louisiana and ended with a 22-17 win over Kansas State. In between, five of the Horns’ seven losses came down to the end with Texas falling by eight points or fewer in each of those. The Longhorns’ offense averaged nearly 200 yards rushing and 425 total yards while ranking 18th nationally in scoring at 35.2 points per game on the season. Worthy had a record-setting season on his way to Freshman All-America and Big 12 Offensive Freshman of the Year honors. Despite missing the final two games with an injury, Robinson compiled 1,127 rushing yards and 11 touchdowns to go with 26 receptions for 295 yards and four more touchdowns. Kicker Cameron Dicker and offensive lineman Derek Kerstetter joined Worthy and Robinson as four Longhorns who earned first-team All-Big 12 honors. All totaled, 14 Longhorns earned All-Big 12 recognition.
Prior to arriving on the Forty Acres, Sarkisian served as the offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach at Alabama where he was the architect of 24 straight games in which the Crimson Tide’s offense scored 35 or more points, the longest streak in major college football history. Despite coming up just short of that in a 31-14 win over Notre Dame in the College Football Playoff semifinals, the victory propelled Alabama to the 2020 National Championship Game where they defeated No. 3 Ohio State, 52-24.
Sarkisian not only boasts play-calling experience at the highest levels of football, but seven years as an FBS head coach ahead of his time in Austin. He guided the Southern California program in 2014-15, and the Washington Huskies from 2009-13. He posted a head coaching record of 46-35 over those seven seasons while leading his teams to five bowl appearances.
Prior to his start in coaching as quarterbacks coach at El Camino College in 2000, Sarkisian starred at the quarterback position at the prep, collegiate and pro levels. He spent time with the Saskatchewan Roughriders of the Canadian Football League for three seasons (1997-99) following his collegiate career at BYU.
While with the Cougars from 1995-96, he completed 549-of-824 passes (66.6 percent) for 7,755 yards and 55 touchdowns. His 162.0 career passing efficiency rating was third on the all-time NCAA list when he finished playing. As a senior in 1996, he led the nation in passing efficiency (173.6, the fourth-best mark in NCAA history at the time), leading the Cougars to the WAC championship and a win in the 1997 Cotton Bowl. He was the WAC Offensive Player of the Year in 1996 and earned second team All-America honors. A participant in the East-West Shrine Bowl in 1997, he was inducted into the East-West Shrine Bowl Hall of Fame in 2024.
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