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Steve Sarkisian arrives in New Orleans with a focused Texas team in tow

Joe Cookby:Joe Cook•12/27/23•

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Steve Sarkisian arrives in New Orleans for the 2024 Sugar Bowl (Joe Cook/Inside Texas)

NEW ORLEANS – The No. 3 Texas Longhorns arrived in New Orleans on Wednesday for a few final days of on-site preparation for their matchup with the No. 2 Wahington Huskies in the Allstate Sugar Bowl as part of the College Football Playoff. Texas head coach Steve Sarkisian was first off the plane, and behind him he believed was a team that has maintained the focus needed to be successful and earn a place in the College Football Playoff National Championship.

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“I love where our team is at,” Sarkisian said after stepping off the plane. “I really thought when we came back to work and really getting back to it a couple of Fridays ago… they were ready. Our guys were ready. I don’t think they even wanted to stop practicing, but I knew that they needed it. We were a little fatigued by that Big 12 Championship game.”

He’d continue saying, “I like the mentality. I feel good about where we’re at. I know that the hay is not in the barn for us. We’ve got work to do this week while we’re here to put ourselves in the best position to be successful.”

The long layoff has allowed for Sarkisian and his staff to take a prolonged look at the Huskies, who went 13-0 and defeated Oregon in the Pac-12 Championship to earn the No. 2 seed in the College Football Playoff. That layoff allowed Kalen DeBoer’s Husky staff to study Sarkisian’s 12-1 Big 12 Champions closely as well.

When asked about the ample time each staff has had to dive into the details of their opponents, Sarkisian said the last thing he needed to do was to outsmart himself ahead of the Longhorns’ biggest game in over a decade.

“Knowing they’ve had the same amount of time we’ve had is understanding as you navigate your way through it,” Sarkisian said. “In the end, it all comes back to let’s not outsmart ourselves. Let’s make sure we do the things that we do well. Let’s make sure we continue to do those things well as we gameplan and put some of the fluff around it.”

As the Longhorns approach their final few days of prep before their New Years Day showdown, Sarkisian knows that pressing the right buttons Wednesday through Sunday are just as important as pressing the right buttons next Monday.

And he feels he has a team with him that will respond well to whatever is thrown at them during a busy week.

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“I also don’t want us to be so over the top so early that we’re exhausted by the time the game comes,” Sarkisian said. “We operate pretty well as a group when we’re loose. We have a lot of fun together as a team. I also think that this group knows when it’s time to be really focused and locked in, they have the ability to do that.”

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