Steve Sarkisian has made Texas an NFL factory at several positions, and more could join their company

Before the start of the Steve Sarkisian era at Texas, there weren’t any positions on the faultily assembled Tom Herman rosters that were in the upper echelon of the sport.

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The Longhorn football program used to be a factory for trophy-winning defensive backs and running backs who made waves in both college and the NFL, but the last five years before Sarkisian joined the Longhorns saw just one player from each of those positions drafted in the first two days of the NFL Draft.

Those days are behind us, and Texas has turned into a factory for producing NFL talent. Twenty-three draft picks in the last two seasons put Texas in historic company. Sarkisian’s track record as a recruiter, developer, and producer of NFL talent is now at the top of the sport, competing with the likes of national title winners like Kirby Smart for that top spot among college football head coaches.

Sarkisian still has a ways to go before reaching that level—let’s talk SEC and national championships—but he has made a few positions his trademark when it comes to all three levels of the sport: high school recruiting, college production, and the NFL talent churn.

Wide Receiver

Outside of winning a Biletnikoff or earning All-American selections, Sarkisian has done pretty much everything you’d want from a coach at the wide receiver position.

It all started with Xavier Worthy, his first major recruit and an eventual first-round pick. He’s already scored a touchdown in the Super Bowl.

Then came the transfers. Adonai Mitchell was a huge producer at Texas and a second-round NFL pick, and Sark helped turn Matthew Golden from a solid Big 12 starter to a first-round NFL draft pick.

This has shown up in the recruiting scene, where Ohio State, a known WR factory, is the only team to match Texas’ three top-10 recruit wide receivers between the 2024 and 2025 recruiting classes. Ryan Wingo is the present, while Jaime Ffrench, Daylan McCutcheon and Kaliq Lockett are the future. Texas has already had four receivers drafted under Sarkisian in his short tenure, and there are at least five more players on this roster with the same expectations.

Defensive Tackle

Texas football fans two years ago would’ve felt like they were in La La Land reading that defensive tackle is Sarkisian’s second-best position as a coach.

Despite having a different starting duo each year and a defensive line coaching change, Sarkisian has made it a point of emphasis to shore up the trenches at Texas. It started with players from the Herman era, Keondre Coburn and Moro Ojomo, being selected in the 2023 draft. After that, the duo of Byron Murphy and T’Vondre Sweat was arguably the best we’ve seen at the position in the 2020s. Sweat was an Outland Trophy winner, and Murphy a first-round pick.

That continued into 2025, where Alfred Collins and Vernon Broughton were each Day 2 selections after becoming somewhat surprisingly elite players in their fifth seasons in Austin. This position has produced first-round picks, All-Americans, and trophy winners, and is also seeing an uptick in recruiting.

While Bo Davis didn’t exactly light the roof on fire with his ability to not only bring in but retain young talent at the position, Kenny Baker’s first class saw Texas add three top-15 defensive tackle recruits to Austin. Auburn was the only other team to bring in two. The position has already produced NFL players, and with this new class and a strong portal group, it’s becoming a dominant position for the Longhorns.

Running Back

We’ve all seen the Tashard Choice running back room picture. The quintet of Bijan Robinson, Roschon Johnson, Jonathon Brooks, Keilan Robinson, and Jaydon Blue all sat together, two years away from all being on NFL rosters.

Bijan was the most special player of this group. While he predated Sarkisian, he truly hit his stride when the Horns head coach came to town. He won the Doak Walker Award and joined an elite group of RBs drafted inside the top 10.

Brooks was the first RB taken in the ensuing draft, and the other three players have already or will carve out a role in the NFL for many years to come. Texas leads all programs with five RBs taken in the last three drafts.

The position’s future is still bright, with Tre Wisner likely securing himself an NFL paycheck down the line and hopes of Jerrick Gibson, CJ Baxter, James Simon, and any of their top Class of ’26 targets becoming All-Americans in Austin.

Looking Forward

While this list could’ve been longer with other positions right now, specifically at offensive tackle and tight end, some future spots are less than a year away from joining elite conversations.

Quarterback is obviously one of them. Texas just sent Quinn Ewers to the NFL and has Arch Manning, someone already crowned to be a No. 1 overall pick no matter when he declares. With Dia Bell joining the room with Trey Owens and KJ Lacey next season, QBU conversations may begin to emerge.

Defensively, Texas is going to produce some of the best edge rushers in all of football. Colin Simmons may be the best defensive player in college football as a sophomore this season. Lance Jackson is a prototypical NFL pass rusher. Barryn Sorrell has already been taken, and Ethan Burke is right behind him. There are a ton of names that could also join this conversation; the room is so deep.

Lastly, the safety position is returning to the talent levels Texas had between 2006–2013. Michael Taaffe was a second-team All-American, Jelani McDonald is a future NFL player, and Texas just brought in the No. 2 and No. 1 safeties in back-to-back classes. You could argue that anywhere from four to six players in this current room will be playing on Sundays.

Sarkisian has really spoiled Texas fans with the crops of talent that are both staying in the Lone Star State and being pulled from different states. Of the positions not mentioned, Texas has produced another Outland Trophy winner, a Thorpe Award winner, and multiple NFL picks. The Longhorns are in the driver’s seat when it comes to talent acquisition and development. Now it’s time to put it all together.