SARK REALITY
OU found its man in Riley. Has Texas with Sarkisian?
DALLAS — Lincoln Riley meets his match Saturday in OU-Texas.
His offensive match. Fortunately, OU-Texas games are won by more than just brilliant schemes and offensive wizardry.
Texas coach Steve Sarkisian makes his State Fair debut Saturday, and the Alabama expatriate no doubt will offer up plenty of tricks. He might even win.
Maiden coaches fare OK in OU-Texas. Since World War II, first-year head coaches are 9-10-1 with Big Tex looking on.
But Sarkisian's long-term potential with the Longhorns is about the same. His success seems like a 50-50 proposition.
The UT offense eventually figures to be quite potent, maybe even today. But Sarkisian is no sure shot, because he was hired for offense alone.
Texas athletic director Chris Del Conte says no. Del Conte, who hired Sark last January after a spectacular run as Alabama’s offensive coordinator, says Sarkisian is the total package.
But Sark was the head coach at Washington and Southern Cal, two fairly prestigious jobs, and didn’t really distinguish himself.
Sarkisian was 34-29 in five years at Washington, taking over a wiped-out program that was 0-12 in the season (2008) before his arrival. But then Sarkisian went 12-6 in 11⁄ seasons at USC
2 and was fired for substance-abuse issues.
Nobody disputes Sarkisian’s offensive acumen, but his ability to lead a massive college football program is in question. Texas has its own unique challenges, but they are not totally unlike USC’s.
“I think it’s all of it,” Del Conte said of Sarkisian’s qualities. “When you look at a place like this, the gravitas at an institution like the University of Texas, sometimes it’s difficult to navigate.”
Del Conte points out that Sark, who played quarterback at Brigham Young, was something of a prodigy. Offered (and turned down) the head-coaching job of the Oakland Raiders at age 32.
Head coach at Washington at age 34.
“Rose, had hard times, learned from his hard times,” Del Conte said. “The moment is not too big for him. The opportunity is not too big for him.
“Steve’s a really good person. When you see everything he’s been through, the way he goes about his business, we knew we had the right person to lead our program.”
Could be. But you never know. And you know even less if a coach already has struck out at a similar job.
Riley, too, was known as an offensive guru. But that’s not why OU athletic director Joe Castiglione turned immediately to Riley when Bob Stoops decided to retire in June 2017.
Riley was unproven as a head coach. But so was Stoops and Barry Switzer and Chuck Fairbanks and Bud Wilkinson, when OU elevated them to the position.
In Riley’s 21⁄ years in Norman, OU of
2 ficials had seen leadership qualities and smarts that go far beyond formations and gameplans.
“I don’t think in terms of putting a percentage on it, but I can say unequivocally, both,” Castiglione said of Riley’s appeal as an offensive mastermind and a program leader.
“But it wasn’t just the offensive savant that he is. We noticed that. Everybody has seen that manifest itself in a lot of ways. But I saw so many examples of an extraordinary leader.”
Riley has been a runaway success. OU’s offenses have remained among the nation’s best, but the program has continued to soar with Riley’s leadership.
“Just because somebody gets a title, doesn’t make them a great leader,” Castiglione said. “It gives them influence. Puts them in position to earn trust, in this case, with the players and the staff they assemble. It’s up to the person to know and develop themselves as a leader.”
But Joe C. said he had more than a hunch that Riley would indeed make a great leader.
“I saw Lincoln demonstrate in so many different ways during the years, that he connects,” Castiglione said. “He isn’t just a person up there talking. He connects. He connects with his players. Certainly has connected with our stakeholders externally.
“He has uncanny sense for what really matters, and that shows with both his current team and other teams. It shows in recruiting. Day to day working with him. He’s a guy that I would call a 360degree leader. He understands the full sphere of what it takes to be successful.”
Under Riley, the Sooners are 50-8. That’s a winning percentage of .862, which is better than the crazy-high standards of Barry Switzer (.837), Bud Wilkinson (.826) and Stoops (.798).
Castiglione had reasons to believe he had found his man, and Castiglione was right. Del Conte can only hope Texas has found its man, too.
Berry Tramel: Berry can be reached at 405-760-8080 or at btramel@oklahoman.com. He can be heard Monday through Friday from 4:40-5:20 p.m. on The Sports Animal radio network, including FM-98.1. Support his work and that of other Oklahoman journalists by purchasing a digital subscription today.