Big 12’s catbird seat is newfound territory for Texas, but the Longhorns are confident in their ability to stay in it

For most of the members of the Texas roster, the games at this point of November have been the ones that typically knock the Longhorns out of the conference championship picture. The 2023 season presents those same players with an opportunity to make up for failures of seasons past.

[Join Inside Texas and get ONE MONTH of Longhorn intel for just $1!]

In 2019, a November 16 defeat at Iowa State gave the Horns their third conference loss, eliminating them from the race for Arlington. 2020 saw the Longhorns lose to the Cyclones again, this time in Austin in late November for Big 12 loss No. 3. Last season, a November 12 loss to TCU at home undid progress made the previous week versus Kansas State, and put a Big 12 title appearance out of Texas’ reach yet again.

Come Saturday, November 18, Texas will play another game with major conference championship implications. Where this season differs is that Texas doesn’t have to rely on other programs to win or lose games in order to make Arlington. The Longhorns can control whether they play for the conference title over the course of these next two games.

“That’s a great feeling,” senior Christian Jones said. “First time I’ve had this feeling, and it’s crazy. I was thinking about that the other, like ‘hey man, I’m in November. I’m not just playing for pride. I’m playing for a championship. It’s crazy, man. It’s solid.’ I love it.”

This is uncharted territory for most Longhorns. The only exceptions are transfers Ryan Watts and Adonai Mitchell, who won conference titles at their previous schools. While Texas head coach Steve Sarkisian mentioned his team would utilize those two for some guidance, the staff’s experience in these situations is what Texas will lean on heading into Ames, Iowa.

“I think that’s where leadership steps in,” Sarkisian said Thursday. “I’ve been fortunate to be a part of some pretty exciting championship runs, our coaching staff has. A lot of the coaches on our staff have been in the College Football Playoff, have won conference championships. How we present it to them I think is important.”

Sarkisian’s experience in championship runs stem from his time as an assistant at USC and Alabama, where Pete Carroll and Nick Saban respectively contended for and won conference championships.

Similar applies for Bo Davis, Kyle Flood, and Jeff Banks. All three took home several SEC titles while working for Saban. Flood also won a Big East title as Rutgers head coach in 2012.

Pete Kwiatkowski won two Pac-12 titles as a defensive coordinator at Washington. Blake Gideon was on the last Longhorn team to win the Big 12 in 2009. Even Tashard Choice won a Big 12 title as a player, albeit as a member of the Oklahoma Sooners.

Those coaches will be on the field, but the players will be the ones determining the outcomes of the game. Aside from Watts and Mitchell, nobody on the Longhorns has successfully navigated this type of scenario.

Sarkisian hasn’t sensed any apprehension in light of those facts. Rather, he’s seen just the opposite with a spot in Arlington hinging on the results of the next two games.

“There’s not a sense of anxiety or anything like that,” Sarkisian said. “I think there’s a real sense of confidence in what we’re doing. They also appreciate the fact that we’re extremely demanding as a staff still. I’ve probably coached them as hard a couple of days this week as I’ve coached them in a long time because I know what is needed as you work your way through November.”

Sarkisian also explained how the kind of player he seeks out in recruiting is well-suited for these situations. In recent years, Sarkisian spoke about how the players he and the rest of his staff try to bring in come from championship programs, whether in Texas or around the country. Those players were driven to help their high schools bring home hardware, and they’re wired to do the same for Texas.

[Sign up NOW for the Inside Texas newsletter for Texas Longhorns daily updates and breaking news in your inbox!]

“The guys we’re recruiting didn’t come here just to put on the jersey and say they’re playing football at Texas,” Sarkisian said. “They came here to win championships. Now that we’re in this realm, that we’re competing for a conference championship right now, I think our players are more excited than anything.”

The last two-plus seasons have been a build up to this opportunity for the Longhorns to get over the championship hump after so many early Decembers stuck at home. Whether that build up continues depends on the results of the next two weeks.

“This is where we’re supposed to be,” Sarkisian said. “Now let’s go finish the mission.”