LIVE UPDATES: Steve Sarkisian recaps Kansas win, previews Red River Shootout versus Oklahoma

Texas head coach Steve Sarkisian will be available to the media today for his regularly scheduled press conference to recap the Longhorns’ 40-14 win over Kansas and preview this week’s Red River Shootout versus the Oklahoma Sooners in the Cotton Bowl in Dallas.

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Longhorn Network will televise the press conference, which is set to begin at 11 a.m. It will also be aired on TexasSports.com and be available locally on 1300 The Zone in Austin.

Updates from Steve Sarkisian

Steve Sarkisian: “I’ve been talking about being a versatile football team all year. I thought our versatility showed itself again Saturday against Kansas. Our ability to possess the football, creating explosive plays on offense was a key factor in the game. It was really our best game on third and fourth down that we’ve had all year, where we were 9-for-15 on third down plus 2-for-2 on fourth down. Do the math, that’s 11 of our 15 drives that we were able to extend on third and fourth down.”

Steve Sarkisian says there were essentially three plays that led to most of Kansas’ production.

Steve Sarkisian: “I think minimizing the explosive plays on defense is going to be critical. Then our operation on field goals has got to get better. Snap, hold, kick, we’ve got to clean that up. Bert’s too good of a kicker to have missed a few here in the last couple of weeks, so we’ve got to get that cleaned up.”

Steve Sarkisian: “Great deal of respect for OU. Coach Venables has done a tremendous job going into year two. The quarterback, Gabriel, is playing at a very high level. They’ve got an explosive unit. He distributes the ball beautifully, whether it’s RPOs, advantage throws, shot plays, things of that nature.”

Steve Sarkisian: “At the end of the day, this is a great rivalry. I don’t think there’s a whole lot of love lost between the fan bases, between the ex-players and ex-coaches.”

Steve Sarkisian on OU: “I’m sure they’re talking about last year’s game, too. We’re going to get an emotional team coming into the Cotton Bowl that we’re going to have to compete against.”

Steve Sarkisian says Ja’Tavion Sanders is day-to-day.

Steve Sarkisian says Ryan Watts is day-to-day.

Steve Sarkisian: “I think they’re playing really well together. A lot of guys on the same accord. The front tied together with the backers tied together with the secondary. The multiplicity of what they do is very challenging. They’ve got a lot of pressure packages so it’s definitely challenging on that front, especially when they’re all on the same accord and working well together.”

Steve Sarkisian says Danny Stutsman is the playmaker linebacker that Brent Venables’ system normally has.

Steve Sarkisian says trust has been a key factor for the Longhorns this year. “The best examples I can give are the reality of the execution right now. We aren’t playing football where there’s a bunch of mistakes.”

Steve Sarkisian on his pitch to players to stay and develop, he says it starts with his relationship with individual players: “I think at the end of the day, whether you’re first on the depth chart, second on the depth chart, a scout team player for that matter right now in season, we’re trying to get everybody better every day.” — “I think our players appreciate that.” — “If a guy wants to transfer, we wish them luck. I don’t feel like I should be at a place now to where I have to talk somebody to want to stay in our program or I have to talk the player to want to commit to our program. I think at the end of the day, we’re very transparent of who we are, what we do, and how we do it. The guys that choose to come here are coming for the right reasons, and players that stay in our program are staying because of the right reasons.”

Steve Sarkisian asked if he’s coaching the best team in college football: “That’s for you guys to answer. I don’t have a vote. I’m not in the Coaches Poll.” — “It’s flattering to some degree, the fact that the product that we’re putting on the field is one that people appreciate the way we’re playing, and I think our players have earned the respect of some that feel that way and hopefully we can continue to do that.”

Steve Sarkisian on helping Jonathon Brooks in the wake of the death of his father: “When you have 120 sons, we’re going to have off the field adversity that strikes. Any time death is involved, in Jonathon’s case with his father, that’s tough. That’s traumatic and the biggest thing we try to do is just get around him and let them know we’re here for him. I thought his teammates did a great job when his father passed. They were all there for him. Our coaches were there for him. You put your arm around them. You constantly check in on them. When you have real relationships with people, it’s a little easier to get connected and it’s a little easier for the person that’s going through something to be vulnerable to express how they feel so that they don’t feel like they have to harbor those feelings.”

Steve Sarkisian on defensive rotation: “Sometimes, you don’t feel the effect of that rotation in the first half, but naturally you look at some of these fourth quarters we’ve been having now in the way that we’re finishing some of these games, I do think it’s paying dividends not only in that game that we’re specifically talking about, but over the course of the season.”