Sarkisian focuses on keeping stars in state
AUSTIN — Near the tail end of his opening remarks during Tuesday’s introductory press conference, Texas coach Steve Sarkisian stopped talking to the fans and media to directly address a group he needs to earn the affection of most right now.
“To the high school coaches in the state of Texas, this is your program, our doors are always open,” Sarkisian declared. “I’ve so much respect for the high school football in the state of
Texas, the great programs, the rich history and tradition, the great players that have come from your programs. Couldn’t be more proud and humbled to be your head coach, and I look forward to creating those relationships with you.”
“I do think it is vitally important for the University of Texas Longhorns to get back to the
top of college football,” he added, “and we need to keep the best players in the state of Texas home. That’ll be the priority when it comes to recruiting.”
Sarkisian was strumming those new coach classics just as his predecessor Tom Herman did four long years ago. But it’s the precise tone — gracious and gushy, bordering on reverential — the Longhorns’ 31st head coach had to strike on his first official day in the office given how the past few months played out.
The 2021 recruiting cycle has seen only three of the state’s top 40 recruits commit to Texas, as graded by the 247Sports composite: No. 3 Ja’tavion Sanders, No. 25 Ishmael Ibraheem and No. 26 JD Coffey. Ibraheem, who did not sign a National Letter of Intent during the December early signing period, was charged with misdemeanor evading arrest last month but is still expected to sign in February after his court date.
Texas A&M (eight), Alabama (seven) and Oklahoma (five) have all outclassed the state’s flagship university in collecting top 40 Texans this cycle. That marks a drastic decline from a year ago when the Longhorns signed 11 of the state’s 40 best high school seniors, more than any other FBS program.
So on Wednesday, a couple days after Sarkisian capped his two-year stint as Alabama’s offensive coordinator with a national title, the Californian met with what might be the most powerful caucus of high school football coaches and influencers in the country. He dropped in on a board meeting of the Texas High School Coaches Associations (THSCA), which tweeted out a photo of Sarkisian alongside board president Rodney Webb, executive director Joe Martin, assistant executive director Glen West and president-elect John King.
Martin formerly coached at Allen, Garland High, Mabank and Lake Dallas. West spent 20 years at Brenham as coach and athletic director. Webb coaches Denton Guyer. King is Longview’s athletic director and head coach.
The statewide tour won’t start and end there for Sarkisian, who spoke often Tuesday about building genuine relationships with players and fans, but also the coaches he hopes will funnel the state’s vast collection of blue-chip prospects to the Forty Acres for years to come.
“Who I am and what I am, as people get to know me will be an authentic human,” Sarkisian said. “Whether you’re a player, a donor, a recruit, a recruit’s parent, (I’ll be) one that you feel is real and honest and upfront, and one that you can relate to, because I do think that is really, really important.”
Sarkisian’s redemption tale and “all gas, no brakes” philosophy has resonated, thanks in no small part to what Alabama did all season under the 2020 Broyles Award winner. Less than a full day after the Crimson Tide hung 52 points on Ohio State to win their third College Football Playoff title, Lewisville four-star receiver Armani Winfield tweeted out his commitment to the Longhorns.
What remains to be see is if Sarkisian’s stance on the “Eyes of Texas” will have any impact on attracting Black players.
Herman drew the ire of Texas boosters last fall when he didn’t require players to sing the school song, which has roots in minstrel shows from the early 1900s. Over the summer, several Texas athletes and students had asked for the removal of the song to make the school more inclusive for Black students. Sarkisian said the team would sign the song ‘proudly.’
Texas is also locked in a recruiting battle with Texas A&M over the state’s lone uncommitted top 50 recruit, Cy-fair four-star tailback LJ Johnson. With Texas also retaining respected running backs coach Stan Drayton and Sarkisian’s arrival injecting excitement, Johnson could become a late-period steal on national signing day next month.
And the poaching of Alabama tight ends and special teams coach and recruiter extraordinaire Jeff Banks, who The Athletic’s Bruce Feldman reported will serve in the same capacity at Texas, adds even more hype to a program currently soaked in it.
“The message is, I came here to win championships, that’s the goal,” Sarkisian said. We’re here to chase greatness. That’s why I’m here. That’s what’s gonna drive us every single day.
“But that won’t be the hope that we will, that is putting in the work to develop the confidence that we will. And I think when people see our brand of football, it will be one that is exciting, that is attacking. I promise you that people are going to want to be part of this program.”