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San Jose State head coach Ken Niumatalolo: "All the recognition Texas is getting is well deserved"

Joe Cookby:Joe Cook•05/26/25•

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San Jose State travels to Texas on September 6 to play the Longhorns in Darrell K Royal-Texas Memorial Stadium, and Spartans head coach Ken Niumatalolo knows his team is in for a major challenge.

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Niumatalolo, who spoke with Inside Texas last week for a video that will premiere on the IT YouTube channel later today, spoke about the challenges of going from service academy football to San Jose State, replacing All-American wide receiver Nick Nash, and keeping things going after a quality 2024 season.

But he understands that Texas is going to be his biggest test in 2025.

Here’s what Niumatalolo had to say about the Longhorns and Steve Sarkisian just under 100 days away from the start to the season.

“Because they were on TV so much last year, I watched them a ton. I know Sark a little bit. When he was a young coach, he came and interviewed at UNLV in the late 90s. Knew him when he was at BYU, knew of him when he played. I got to be around him at a couple of bowl game functions. When he was at SC, they were playing in the Holiday Bowl and we were playing in the Poinsettia Bowl so I got to meet him there. Phenomenal football coach. He’s a true NFL-type coach.

“You see the (Sean) McVays of the world or the (Kyle) Shanahans, the (Mike) McDonalds, the head coaches that call plays, obviously that’s Sark. He’s a brilliant play-caller. Any time Texas plays, I love to watch Texas play. I like the way he calls. I like the way he sets things up. Seeing him over there squatting down and looking at his call sheet.

“That’s what I like to watch as a college football coach. I just watch other coaches, especially guys like him play-calling. I just think he’s a master, one of the best in the country at calling plays. He’s done a really good job of getting Texas to where everybody believes they should be, where they’re perennially now in the conversation for the national championship. Not just back winning the Big 12, but they’re always in the conversation of being in the Playoffs and being a national champion, being ranked one through three.

“You see in the combine how many Longhorns there were and how many guys were drafted. It’s a testament to what he’s done there. They’re obviously one of the blue bloods in college football, he’s taken them to a place where I know all Longhorn fans have always expected to be where Texas is always in the conversations with Alabama, LSU, Ohio State.

“All the recognition Texas is getting is well deserved. I’ve seen a ton of games. I saw them a ton last year because they were on TV so much. Whenever we were in the hotel, Texas is on, I love to watch because I love to watch Sark call plays. It’s going to be a tall order for us. Their roster is as good as anybody’s. It’s going to be up there, you look at some of the stuff that happened, probably with them and Ohio State who will still be the top roster teams. Interesting how they’re playing before we play. Their roster, unfortunately for us, is really, really good.”

Check back on the Inside Texas YouTube channel later today for the full conversation with Niumatalolo.

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