Steve Sarkisian and Clark Lea have battled once before
Saturday’s contest between the No. 5 Texas Longhorns and the No. 25 Vanderbilt Commodores won’t be the first time the respective head coaches have called plays against each other.
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At the end of the 2020 season, current Texas head coach Steve Sarkisian was the offensive coordinator for the Alabama Crimson Tide. Current Vanderbilt head coach Clark Lea was the defensive coordinator for the Notre Dame Fighting Irish, splitting time between his duties in South Bend, Ind. and his newfound responsibilities with the Commodores. The two teams squared off in the Rose Bowl (played in Dallas, Texas) as part of the 2020 College Football Playoff semifinal.
“A ton of respect for Clark,” Sarkisian said Monday. “He’s a great defensive coach. He’s a very good head coach. He’s extremely knowledgeable about the game and understanding the game. I think at times, he thinks somewhat like an offensive coach with the discipline and execution in which they operate, the foreshadowing of things that might come, and then how he’s going to defend those things.”
The Crimson Tide prevailed 31-14 on their way to a national championship.
Each coach’s respective side of the ball had a lot of NFL talent. Sarkisian had Mac Jones, Najee Harris, Brian Robinson, DeVonta Smith, John Metchie, and a host of others to work with. On the Fighting Irish defense, there were future pros like Jeremiah Owusu-Koramoah, Daelin Hayes, Kyle Hamilton, Isaiah Foskey, Cam Hart, and JD Bertrand.
As the score indicates, Sarkisian was able to get the best of Lea.
The Crimson Tide racked up 439 yards split between 142 rushing and 297 passing. Jones was an uber-efficient 25-for-30 for 297 yards and four touchdowns. Smith, the Heisman winner, had seven catches for 130 yards and three scores. Harris racked up 125 yards on 15 carries.
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While that was how the game went in 2021, just one day before Sarkisian was announced as the new Texas head coach, Sarkisian admitted he’ll be facing a coach in Lea who has changed since leaving South Bend for Nashville.
“Who he was at Notre Dame is a little bit different than who he is today defensively,” Sarkisian said. “Not completely, but a little bit. That shows the evolution. We’re always trying to evolve as coaches. A ton of respect for him. I always look forward to competing against really good coaches, because that’s our challenge too.”
Just as Sarkisian has Texas at heights it hasn’t reached in years, so too have the Commodores under Lea. Vanderbilt is ranked for the first time since 2013 when James Franklin was leading the ‘Dores. Complementary football is the name of the game for Vanderbilt, and that starts with Lea leading the defense Sarkisian will have to battle for the second time in his career.
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“I’ve got a ton of respect for Clark, the job he’s doing there, and the job he’s done over his career,” Sarkisian said.
