LIVE UPDATES: Steve Sarkisian talks second signing day, portal class, previews spring football

Texas head coach Steve Sarkisian will be available to the media at 11 a.m. to discuss the second signing day, additions made via the transfer portal, and what lies ahead when spring football begins.

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Inside Texas will have live updates. The press conference is also on Longhorn Network and 1300 The Zone in Austin.

Updates from Steve Sarkisian

Steve Sarkisian: “I think just as we’ve had to adapt to the new time and era of college football that y’all have had to adapt a little too. This used to be that signing day press conference where we talked about all the great players that you sign, and everybody signs the greatest class they’ve ever signed year in and year out. That has changed. Obviously, we didn’t sign one player to day.”

Steve Sarkisian on recruiting, says they have 30 new players on the roster between the 22 signees and eight transfers. Adds 24-25 are on campus today and 5-6 will arrive in June: “The bulk of those players are already on campus. They’ve already started winter conditioning workouts with Coach Becton.”

Steve Sarkisian on Isaiah Bond: “Electric receiver for us. Guy that we recruited hard out of Buford High School in Georgia. Went to Alabama and had a tremendous year for them this year. Great deep ball player, deep threat, elite speed. We think there’s more to his game than just that.”

Steve Sarkisian says Tia Savea will be able to fill a void at iDL.

Steve Sarkisian says Amari Niblack’s touchdown for the Crimson Tide versus Texas opened his staff’s eyes.

Steve Sarkisian said Trey Moore was key in helping improve the team’s pass rush ability.

Steve Sarkisian says Silas Bolden is still at Oregon State and will transfer in June: “Another elite speed receiver for us. Veteran player, had a great year last year at Oregon State.”

Steve Sarkisian: “We still want to recruit the bulk of our class from the high school ranks, highly competitive high-character kids… What the portal does for a school like us is it can help you fill the voids when voids happen.”

Steve Sarkisian says they have 10 at wide receiver after four high school additions and three transfers. After the Sugar Bowl, they had just three total wide receivers left on the rosters.

Steve Sarkisian: “One thing we’re really proud of here and going into year four is I’ve had the same coordinators on our football team for now going into four straight seasons.”

Steve Sarkisian: “To bring in Johnny Nansen from Arizona, who was their defensive coordinator at Arizona in a heck of a turnaround that they had last season, a guy that has worked with me in the past at Washington and USC, is a huge addition for us.”

Steve Sarkisian name drops Mike McDaniel and Chris Grier when speaking about the network that provided strong recommendations for Kenny Baker from the Miami Dolphins.

Steve Sarkisian says there will probably be “a couple more additions” to the recruiting department even after recent elevations of Brandon Harris, John Michael Jones, Taylor Searels, and Kendyl Perry.

Steve Sarkisian: “Shout out to Kyle Shanahan in getting the Niners to the Super Bowl again. A dear friend, a guy that I have a ton of respect for in the profession, guy that I love sharing ideas with and to watch him do his thing is awesome to see.”

Steve Sarkisian says there are four more weeks of winter conditioning. Texas will have spring break off before starting practice on March 19. Five weeks, 3 days per week. Pro day is March 20. Texas’ coaches’ clinic is March 22. Spring game is on April 20 at 1 p.m.

Steve Sarkisian on Brandon Harris: “His perception of players I thought was very impressive for a young guy. His perception of character I thought was very impressive for a young guy. His ability to communicate I thought was incredibly. It was a guy that we’ve just grown, our relationship has really grown over three years. So I felt like the time was right for him to assume this role.”

Sark on the general manager role, mentions transfer portal, NIL, and managing the roster: “I wanted to make sure I had someone in that role that I connected to on another level.”

Steve Sarkisian: “I came here to win a championship. If I can get one, I want to get two. I’m borderline obsessed with it at this point. I know what it tasted like last year. I know how close we were, and I couldn’t wait to get back. Hopefully that’s what our team really starts to exude, is this obsession with being the best.”

Sarkisian on Quinn Ewers’ return: “I don’t think Quinn was a finished product yet. I think there’s plenty of room for growth and improvement and development in his game going into year three.” — “I do think his experience and maturity are all going to be things we can benefit from. We’re going to need his leadership.”

Steve Sarkisian on Arch Manning: “I think Arch had got an extremely bright future. We’re very fortunate to have him on our roster. He’s got great leadership skills, a great skill set, and so (Ewers and Manning) are going to be big for us next year.”

Steve Sarkisian: “Complacency is like the devil. I cannot afford anybody in our building to feel like they’ve arrived. This is a new team. This team now has to develop their culture. This team has to develop their strengths. I have to identify their weaknesses and how we can improve upon those things.”

Steve Sarkisian on WR, says they trained Ryan Niblett, DeAndre Moore, and Johntay Cook at all three receiver positions.

Steve Sarkisian on wide receiver: “That room is going to be really solid. We’ve just got to find that right group of guys once September rolls around.”

Steve Sarkisian on EDGE: “I’m hopeful those edge guys contribute in a way where we can have a lot more impact with our pass rush off the edge.”

Steve Sarkisian: “I anticipate us being fully healthy by spring practice.”

Steve Sarkisian: “The 2024 version of Texas Longhorns football is going to look a little different than the 2023 version. My job is to identify the strengths of this team and then play to the strengths.”

Steve Sarkisian on the post-Sugar Bowl scene: “One of my biggest things in the locker room was I understood the disappointment — we were all disappointed — but in the end we came into the season to be champions and they were Big 12 Conference champions, something that hadn’t ben done here in a long, long time.”

Steve Sarkisian on the Sugar Bowl: “It was almost good enough, but it wasn’t good enough.”

Steve Sarkisian: “Just about every coach on our coaching staff got offered a job this offseason. Legitimately.”

Steve Sarkisian: “I think it’s a slippery slope, when you’re talking about building a culture and building a team, of how much you pour into the other side of this thing and how much NIL, all that.”

Steve Sarkisian on balancing all the responsibilities of being the head coach at Texas: “I kind of welcome the challenge. I kind of think I’m pretty equipped for this thing and looking forward to it and enjoying it. I think that we’re benefitting from some of the changes in college football because I think we’ve been built for this thing and been building toward it.”

Steve Sarkisian on Johnny Nansen: “I know he is an ace recruiter on the West Coast and in California.” — “To get someone with a strong footprint in California was big for me.”

Steve Sarkisian talked a good amount about having California and West Coast recruiting connections of his own.

Then when asked about recruiting the Austin area, he mentions “jumping on the 35.”

— Joe Cook (@josephcook89) February 7, 2024

Steve Sarkisian on Johntay Cook, DeAndre Moore, and Ryan Niblett: “They’re all very talented young players or we wouldn’t have recruited them. They’ve got size. They’ve got speed. They’ve got ball skills. Their future is very bright. But to think I was going to go into a season with three scholarship wide receivers, that would have been malpractice.”