"That's why I got hired:" Steve Sarkisian has no plans to give up play-calling duties at Texas

In Texas, a common refrain is Jerry the Owner needs to fire Jerry the General Manager. That phrase doesn't get uttered all that often anymore because it became clear more than 20 years ago that Jerry Jones will give up his GM title of the Dallas Cowboys over his dead body. Now, it's been replaced by a new phrase: Sark the Head Coach needs to fire Sark the OC.

Typically, that decision is made by a head coach after some years after the offense succeeds at the expense of the rest of the team. Think Kliff Kingsbury at Texas Tech. It's been just the opposite at Texas. The defense has been among the best in the country for the past two seasons. Special teams won the game at Kentucky on Saturday. It's the head coach's side of the ball that stinks.

Texas won Saturday at Kentucky, but it was a win so unimpressive that the Longhorns actually dropped a spot in the AP poll. More specifically, it was the offense that was unimpressive. Consider that the offense produced 179 scrimmage yards and eight first downs (one via penalty). The four scoring drives covered five yards, 40, 21, and minus-2 yards. 

But it's more than just one game. Texas is averaging 16.8 points per game against Power 4 competition, with significant help over the last two games from special teams (the Longhorns also returned a punt for a touchdown vs. Oklahoma). That's 84th nationally. Last year's offense, with nine NFL draft picks, averaged 28.4 points against the Power 4, but failed to surpass 20 points in five of their final seven games.

Outside the offense, the program is otherwise healthy. Texas is third in the country in scoring defense for the second straight season. More Longhorns have been taken in the past two NFL drafts than any other program in the country. Players aren't transferring out at an inordinate rate, and they're not getting in trouble off the field in large numbers, either.

All that data suggests that Steve Sarkisian should lean into his CEO role and relinquish the play sheet. Or at least consider it. 

Asked on Monday, Sarkisian indicated that isn't in his immediate plans.

"No, because that's why I got hired,"  Sarkisian said Monday when asked if he would consider giving up play-calling duties. "I was a really good offensive coordinator.

"If I was the best outside sales guy and I had a start-up company, surely I'm going to go to the sales meetings if we're trying to sell something, right? I'm always going to tap into the strengths that I have, and being a play-caller on offense is one of my strengths."

Where Sarkisian's analogy breaks down is that no one's suggesting he not sit in on the sales meetings, so to speak, but that as founder of the new start-up, his time probably isn't best spent making sales calls himself.

Furthermore, the problem with Texas's offense right now is not so much the play selection but its construction. Texas did not pursue an offensive lineman or running back in the transfer portal; the offensive line is now one of the worst in the Power 4 and Quintrevion Wisner, best cast as a change-of-pace back, is once again the team's only reliable, starting-quality running back. He's the Longhorns' leading rusher, with 222 yards and two touchdowns on 58 carries. Backup Jerrick Gibson has opted out of the remainder of the season, and 2024 opening-day starter CJ Baxter is coming off an ACL tear only to deal with a hamstring issue that has kept him out of most of the last five games with no timetable for his return. That leaves redshirt freshman Christian Clark, also coming off an ACL tear and true freshman James Simon to share the load with Wisner; last week, the team moved true freshman athlete Michael Terry III from wide receiver to emergency running back depth.

The offensive line, meanwhile, starts true freshman Nick Brooks, signed to play tackle, at left guard because two veterans in front of him proved themselves unplayable. The rest of the line is full of second-, third- or fourth-year players; among them, only right guard DJ Campbell is having a good season, and he's a senior. 

Finally, Sarkisian's answer points to ego standing in the way of the better interest of the program -- and in opposition to the recent history of college football. The last head coach/play caller to win a national championship was Jimbo Fisher at Florida State in 2013. Ryan Day gave up play-calling duties at Ohio State and immediately won a national championship. No one knew more about defense than Nick Saban, yet he did not call his own plays. Urban Meyer was a trend-setter on offense, yet won three national championships with someone else calling plays. 

"Expectations at the University of Texas are always going to be high, but we've raised the bar from where we were when I got here to where they are now, and that's a credit to the players. We're a Playoff team now. When that becomes the standard, then we have to hold ourselves to that standard," Sarkisian said.

For now, Texas is still nominally in the SEC and CFP races, yet it seems like the team's championship hopes are living on borrowed time. Texas plays No. 10 Vanderbilt, No. 5 Georgia, and No. 3 Texas A&M in November; no defense is holding all of them below 17 points.

The focus now, though, is finding a way to outscore Mississippi State on Saturday (4:15 p.m. ET, SEC Network). 

"The SEC champs of last year went to that same stadium last year and won 13-12," Sarkisian said. "By any means necessary, we've got to find a way to win in Starkville, Mississippi."