Three takeaways from Steve Sarkisian's press conference

Steve Sarkisian took the stage at the 2023 Big 12 Media Days, promoting a team he’s clearly excited to coach for this upcoming season while the players he brought along cheered him from off the podium.

[Join Inside Texas today and get the best Texas Longhorns insider team info and recruiting intel!]

His opening statement set the tone for acknowledging the preseason expectations and pressure for the Longhorns to show out in this coming season. Evidently Texas sold out of season tickets back in June, 60,000 snatched up by a Longhorn fanbase eager to finally see their team win.

Sarkisian wasn’t looking to deflect or manage expectations for the team, specific players, or anything around the program but instead was eager to accept the pressure.

“I chose to be the head coach at the University of Texas and our players chose to come to the University of Texas, so with that comes some expectations and the responsibilities that come with that. I think we’ve got a mature enough team to respect what you guys think of us, but now we have to go back to work. What will define us is what happens on Saturdays.”

Sark believes Quinn Ewers is ready

Much of the weight of expectations for the 2023 Longhorns rests on redshirt sophomore quarterback Quinn Ewers, who took the helm a year ago and had a disappointing overall season. Sark noted about his quarterback’s year one and subsequent offseason,

“I think a couple of things about Quinn that stood out to me about last year. He came back for the OU game coming off the injury and had a really good football game. You go read his quotes after that game and all he did was praise his teammates for how they played. Then you look at them after we played Oklahoma State and didn’t play great and had a loss and he took all the blame.

We’ve seen his body composition change, we’ve seen his level of maturity change, we’ve seen his understanding of what w’ere trying to do offensively change. We’re seeing him speak up.”

When Sark was asked about the hype around Ewers as a potential 1st round draft pick he didn’t shy away there either.

“What I do know is, he’s extremely talented, there’s not a throw he can’t make, he has a really high football IQ, and if we see all those things go right the pundits are probably right, he is a 1st round quarterback.”

[Sign up NOW for the Inside Texas newsletter for Texas Longhorns daily updates and breaking news in your inbox!]

Sark believes these Longhorns are a realization of what he’s been building

“Something that in my opinion we’ve got now going into year three is we have quality, competitive depth across the roster. The players know the guy in the same line, behind him or in front of him, is equally talented if not better,” Sark said of his third year team. He’s also excited about the level of maturity and the realization of cultural standards within the program.

“It’s one thing for me to have an idea of a culture I’d like and for them to buy into it. It’s another thing for a team to buy into it and then elevate it. I feel like this team is on a mission because that’s the approach they have every day when they show up to the facility.

I think this team has the maturity to do that because they hold each other accountable. When a guy steps out, the other players will speak up before a coach has to.”

The Texas veterans and linemen are ready to carry forward the program

While likely thinking of senior Jordan Whittington who was watching the presser, Sark praised the quality of leadership from the veterans on the roster who had been at Texas since before he himself was hired to be head coach.

“There’s been a lot of focus on new players that are coming into the program, but we have guys who are in year three with me. These are all guys that I inherited when I got here. We have a lot of veteran players who came to the University of Texas to win a championship. They bought into a new coaching staff, a new style of play, and they have a chance to go win a Big 12 Championship and that in turn permeates across our locker room. That’s our goal.”

In particular, Sark thinks their play on the lines is now getting to where he envisioned when he took the job.

“Well I love what we bring back on the offensive line. Last year we played two true freshman. We’re bringing back all starting five. We have guys vying for starting spots right now that didn’t start a year ago. They have to go against a really good defensive front they have to block every day in practice.”

Texas’ ability to stack a few recruiting classes in the trenches while bringing back big veterans such as T’Vondre Sweat and Christian Jones and having a few years to develop 2021 players like Byron Murphy or Barryn Sorrell has the roster much closer to bringing elite size and experience to bear along the lines.