Five questions for Steve Sarkisian at SEC Media Days

Southeastern Conference Media Days begins on Monday in Dallas, an acknowledgement of the significant additions of Texas and Oklahoma to the league for the 2024 season. Steve Sarkisian along with three players will represent the Texas Longhorns ahead of UT’s debut season in the league considered the best and most competitive in college football.

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This event serves as the peak of “talkin’ season,” as there are no pads being popped on campus at the current moment. Once Sarkisian, Kelvin Banks, Quinn Ewers, and Jahdae Barron board the plane back to Austin, the team will go through the final stages of summer workouts before preparing for the first game on August 31 with a grueling training camp.

The regular beat media hasn’t spoken with Sarkisian since SEC Spring Meetings in Destin the week after Memorial Day. What do Longhorn fans want to know about? Inside Texas offers five questions for the head football coach of the Horns.

What have you done to ensure your culture is just as strong as it was last year?

Sarkisian credited multiple wins during the Longhorns’ 12-2 season last year to a culture built up during vulnerable summer Wednesdays. Those sessions were spent focusing on culture and working to rise from the trials and tribulations of a 13-12 start to Sarkisian’s Texas tenure. Games like Kansas State, Houston, TCU, and Iowa State — all wins — come to mind.

Some of the strongest defenders of that culture, namely Byron Murphy, Jonathon Brooks, Jordan Whittington, Jaylan Ford, and Ja’Tavion Sanders among countless others, are now in the NFL.

Texas will look to players like Banks, Ewers, and Barron to become the new lead defenders of that culture. But in Sarkisian’s eyes, is it as strong as it was last season?

It would be a surprise if his answer leaned toward the negative, but Sarkisian has been forthright about how maintaining a culture is no easy task. In the era of the portal, rosters see more turnover than ever. Look at the Longhorns’ pass-catching corps for evidence.

The Longhorns needed culture to win games in the Big 12. Is it stronger this year when the demands may be tougher during the course of SEC play?

How big of a factor is in-helmet communications?

Sarkisian and Ewers (and Arch Manning, and Trey Owens) were allotted 15 practices in the spring to learn how to best utilize the new in-helmet communication technology for the Longhorn offense. Instead of Sarkisian having to say something like “Dual Right Off Purple Bill Z-Pressure Ice,” into the headset to a group of assistants, then having some members of that group hold up giant posters with various logos on them while others signaled to the team, Sarkisian can just say that right into Ewers’ ear.

Signs may not go away, but their effectiveness pales in comparison to the new technology.

How does that change things for Sarkisian? Along with the play, he can also be direct with Ewers in a way previously impossible and say “look at Matt Golden after his double move.” Can Sark take more time to think on a play on his sheet? Can he maneuver personnel in a way previously not possible? Can he unlock more from Ewers or direct younger quarterbacks like Manning and Owens thanks to the new capabilities?

It’s a world he’s not new to as a play-caller, as he was in Matt Ryan‘s ear as offensive coordinator for the Atlanta Falcons. But it’s one he’s new to in college, and it’ll be interesting to hear how he plans to use the new technology.

Similar applies on defense for Pete Kwiatkowski and whoever the Longhorns chose to have wear the communication device.

How are the new defensive tackles holding up?

Sarkisian lamented the lack of large humans during his post-spring game press conference. In response, he added Bill Norton and Jermayne Lole along with previous portal addition Tiaoalii Savea.

Are they doing enough, along with Alfred Collins and Vernon Broughton, to alleviate some of his concerns up the middle?

This one is pretty straight forward.

Will the pass defense improve?

Total defense and raw yardage totals are often not indicative of a defense’s quality. Texas was No. 13 in the final SP+ defensive rankings, which makes sense considering the Longhorns’ final four finish.

There were metrics where Texas took a step back, however. In 2021, Texas was No. 102 in yards per play allowed giving up 6.03 yards per play. The Horns took a major step forward in 2022, allowing 4.94 yards per play. That was good for No. 18 in the country.

Texas finished No. 41 in the nation in the metric in 2023, giving up 5.24 yards per play. That was even with the nation’s No. 3 rush defense.

Teams weren’t running against Texas, so they had to throw. There’s a push and pull between the numbers that does explain why the Longhorns took a step back in yards per play allowed in 2023, but the explanation also points toward the secondary not always holding up its end of the bargain.

Can Texas match coverage to improved pressure in 2024? With better EDGES, experience all around the secondary, and a heart-and-soul player like Barron leading the back seven, will Texas play the pass better?

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Who is impressing?

Sometimes the simplest questions can get the most telling answers.

Who is impressing so far in preseason workouts? At this point, Sarkisian has seen enough of them and is likely prepared for this question. A thought-out answer is likely and also telling.

Who is due for a breakout year? A little bit of the same question above, but the guys on his radar should be on the people’s radar.

What are your team’s perceived strengths and weaknesses right now? And how do you bolster or improve them?