Following two losing seasons of 5-7 and 8-5, Texas Longhorns head coach Steve Sarkisian’s remarks regarding his 2023 squad on Ryan Clark’s The Pivot podcast in April of last year took on a different tone.
“It appears and feels like my squad,” Sarkisian remarked. “The way the players move, speak, behave, and look, as well as the way we practice—the tempo and speed—all of those things signaled that we were almost ready to play. It is intended to appear like this.
Given that he is familiar with the makeup of winning teams, Sarkisian was deserving of a second chance. When USC won the national championship in 2003, he was the quarterbacks coach. In 2021, he oversaw the Alabama offense that led to the team’s national championship and six first-round draft selections.
With the signing of 28 players from the fifth-ranked 2022 recruiting class and 25 players from the third-ranked 2023 recruiting class, Sarkisian has completely reconstructed the Longhorns roster in the mold of those great teams since taking over.
Nor was Sarkisian overstating the case; Texas finished the regular season undefeated, defeated Oklahoma State convincingly to secure the program’s first Big 12 title since 2009, and secured its first-ever place in the College Football Playoffs.
Eleven players from that squad were invited to the NFL Combine and left a lasting impression. Wide receivers AD Mitchell and Xavier Worthy displayed exceptional athleticism, with Worthy setting the record for the fastest 40-yard dash time in the event’s history. Two defensive tackles, T’Vondre Sweat and Byron Murphy, also made an impression.
“I think we have really good length, even at our skill position spots. Good length, we’ve got good speed. I think we have good size internally. I think we’ve got quarterbacks that can that can make the throws necessary. I think we’ve got versatile players at positions where you need versatility, whether it’s tight end, linebacker, safety, Star. The runners are all versatile players — they can catch, they can run, they can run with speed, they can run with power,” Sarkisian said.
Sarkisian is definitely right about the speed. At running back, Texas features junior Jaydon Blue, who clocked the fastest speed at 22.3 miles per hour of any player at his position during the regular season. The wide receiver room added junior Alabama transfer Isaiah Bond, who ran a 10.48 100m in high school that was faster than the best time Worthy recorded at Fresno Central East. Even early enrollee Ryan Wingo, a bigger-bodied receiver at 6’2, 208 pounds, ran a 10.55 10mm as a junior.
At practice, the team looks the part. Now the Longhorns just have to uphold the standards set by the 2023 group. Now Sarkisian has backed up last offseason’s lofty claims.
“When we come out and I look at our team warm up and I watch us stretch and I watch some of the individual drills when I’m not with the quarterbacks and we’re a good-looking team,” Sarkisian said.
“But we need to play good, right? That’s always the challenge, but to your point, it looks like a team that I recruited and not only physically, but I think the mental makeup as well.”
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