Steve Sarkisian tells ‘awesome story’ about Luke Brockermeyer

First-year coach Steve Sarkisian has only been at Texas for a few months, but he must have read up on the history of the program. During his weekly press conference, Sarkisian shared a great story about the legacy of a Texas football legend and the perseverance of a walk-on who became a starter.

When Sarkisian was asked about starting middle linebacker Luke Brockermeyer and his Week One performance, he had nothing but good things to say.

“Awesome story, first of all,” Sarkisian told reporters during his Monday press conference. “The legacy of his dad here and him walking on. Everything he’s done here with us he’s earned. He’s earned a lot of respect of his teammates. They’ll tell you the same thing. He’s a hard-nosed kid, he’s smart. He recognized and diagnoses things so he communicates well with other guys on the field. I couldn’t be more happy for the guy to have the opportunity and the way he’s playing for us.”

Brockermeyer finished Saturday with 10 tackles and a sack, helping lead the defense to its 38-18 win over a ranked Louisiana team.

Coming into the 2021 season, Brockermeyer had appeared in seven games over two seasons with no starts, earning a scholarship in a team meeting on Sept. 29, 2019, during Texas’ bye week.

The Brockermeyer family

The legacy of the Brockermeyer family started in 1959 when Luke’s grandfather Kay played offensive tackle for the Longhorns. Luke’s father Blake went on to become an All-American offensive tackle at Texas in 1994. Blake went on to become a first round draft pick and played 13 NFL seasons.

The Texas legend married his wife Kristy and had four sons. The oldest, Jack, recently graduated from Rice. Luke is the second oldest and the first of the four to start at the college level. He is also the only in the Brockermeyer family to play on the defensive side of the ball, with his twin brothers James and Tommy playing on offense.

The younger Brockermeyer’s were the first in the family to leave the state, joining Alabama’s 2021 recruiting class. Tommy is a five-star prospect and ranked No. 5 amongst offensive tackles. James is a four-star center ranked No. 287 overall in the 2021 On3 recruiting rankings.

Neither of the twins appeared in Alabama’s 44-13 Week One win over Miami. According to Alabama’s latest depth chart, the brothers are not part of the first or second team offense.