Steve Sarkisian on the Dan Patrick Show Full Interview | 8/19/24

MercedesBenz Dream Days [Music] [Applause] today's Mercedes-Benz interview of the day brought to you by Mercedes-Benz dream days Mercedes-Benz dream Days Are Here exceptional offers the GLE Coupe E-class sedan C-Class sedan CLE uh cabet right now through September 3rd learn more at mbusa.com sdream he's the head coach of the Texas Longhorn Steve sisian back on the program SEC do you feel like you're in the SEC now or is there still part of that big 12 uh hangover I think once you go to League meetings in uh in the spring down there in dtin uh you you definitely feel like you're part of the conference uh you know the SEC does everything big and then naturally with the media days and and doing media days in Dallas uh you you could feel the energy the excitement and so um but we'll find out more when the season comes around we got to start we got to start playing these games week after week take me back to when you took the job did you know at the time Texas was going into the SEC I did not uh you know I I took this job uh with the under the impression of we would be in the Big 12 um you know I took the job because it was University of Texas right and the history and tradition the great players coaches uh teams that that we've had here uh and what an unbelievable University and the City of Austin all those great things and then after it been on the job for a little while then I got notified of the potential and then naturally it all came to fruition so um you know I think it's a great opportunity for us and US continuing to build this program and and in the state of college football where it's headed and so much has been made I think of conference realignment about um you know people losing rivalries and in some of the history of college football we're actually gaining two back you know for the opportunity for us to play A&M again the opportunity for us to play Arkansas gim and some of those great games with with with Coach Royals and and and Daryl K Royal and and just what that that that rivalry me over the years for us we're kind of gaining some rivalries back as as well as going into my opinion uh you know the best the best conference in the country which SEC stadiums have you Stadiums never coached or played in ah wow you know I've never been to the swamp uh you know I've never been you know coached in I've been there I've never coached there I've never coached at Georgia um wow I I think just about everywhere else I've been you know obviously you know been in Bryant Denny been to LSU um I've been to been to College Station so been a lot of those stadiums are great environments the Fanfare I think that's what makes this conference so great right I mean a there's Elite coaching there's elite players uh there's there's a reason the SEC has more NFL draft picks than any other conference every year but the the fan engagement and and the way that they commit to their teams and the love they have for their programs uh in my opinion is second to none but this is a soap oper this is like reality TV when when you're in the SEC it it's just different than any other place uh and I I don't even know how you prepare for something like that aside from getting your team ready but really it's it's its own soap opera well I think the challenge is you know having been in that League you know three different years with Bama in 2016 and then in in 2019 and 2020 that that we all are aware everybody's aware of the physical challenge that it that it takes you know the physicality of the SEC and and things of that nature to me it's it's the mental intensity that you have to have week in and week out to get prepared um and I think that's going to be probably one of our challenges that I have to help navigate our team through and and manage through that's my job to do that because week in and week out um when you go on the road the environments are the environments even our home games the the fans travel really well and they're going to want to travel to Austin it's going to be a new you know new place for them to come play in so we've got to do a great job from a from a mental intensity standpoint of making sure that we're dialed in not just on Saturday on game day but Monday Tuesday Wednesday Thursday and Schedule Friday uh we're talking to Steve sarkeesian Texas head coach who uh scheduled at Michigan for week two you know how long has that been scheduled that game was scheduled before I got here I don't I don't know able to do that and clearly you haven't looked at our future schedule either because the next year we go to Ohio State so we'll we'll go three straight years at Alabama non-conference at Michigan at Ohio State but that's you know for me I think that that's it's actually a really good thing especially now more than ever with the expanded playoff the fact that that you know we get to go play these early non-conference games um get a little bit of a of a of of a barometer of where we're at as a program but I I think the beauty of it is that those games early in the year really aren't going to Define your season um you still have to go play well in your conference you if you don't win you still can maybe afford a loss and or two or maybe even three and get into that playoff gives it a little bit more of that NFL feel uh that way to where you know you you can really test your team early in the season see where you're at where do you need to improve uh to get ready for conference play how do you think Nick Nick Saban sabin's going to do as a member of the media I think he's going to do great man you know he uh I've seen him a few times and I've saw him obviously at SEC media days I watched him covering the NFL draft he's so knowledgeable right and he's got so much more personality than people probably give him credit for um but his Insight is is really incredible and and I could sit there and listen to him all day and so I think he's going to do great I think I think fans are really going to gravitate to wanting to hear him speak on uh games and strategy and different things that that that come up with the ball games you had Roger Clemens in the building I had we had the rocket in man it was awesome great story behind this you know so two years ago we were playing bam at home and the who's who were on the sidelines right like you'd imagine I mean there's Vince Young there's Kevin Durant and second quarter I looked down I said holy crap that's Roger Clemens you know and I grew up a huge Red Sox fan when I was a kid so it's a TV timeout so I go down there I said hey Roger it's great to meet you I love having you here I said I'm a huge fan and so that next week uh I get a package and and he sends me a jersey you know and it says you know rocket Roger Clemens seven time Sai Young two-time World Series and then he puts in quotes tough all day and I said what a great saying and so we've actually adopted what was his Mantra was tough all day and so we had him come speak to the team uh last Friday and it was it was awesome you know and to put to put it into perspective we got a lot of young players that never saw Roger Clemens pitch but when you think about you know 4600 strikeouts you know 20 strikeouts in a game twice uh seven seven Sai Youngs I mean those are incredible numbers and so uh and then you realize he's 62 years old and he looks like he's about 45 looks like he can still get on the mound and throw about 98 okay but you're facing Alabama and Roger Clemens it's a TV timeout and you have to go say hello to Roger Clemens yo yeah but that's but that's kind of who I am you know I I appreciate one thing about me Dan you probably know this I I love college football I love the pageantry of college football um and and all that comes into it those big games I think part of that even was with my time at SC with Pete with with Pete Carroll and you look down the sidelines and there's Snoop Dogg or there's there's will frell or there's you know Marcus Allen whoever it was and just watching him engage with them I think it almost gave us a sense of confidence like coach is in a great frame of mind we should stay in a great frame of mind he's he know he's loose he's confident uh and so I kind of evolved into that myself and so uh I do try to touch base with the people on our Sidelines you know whether it's in pregame or sometimes during a TV timeout just to kind of give him a high five or a fist bump and and let them know I appreciate him being there do Arch Manning your players know you played quarterback uh I think they do you know I think nowadays with YouTube and I think they like pulling up all my bad plays but uh they they do know unfortunately I can't throw like I used to but I think they're aware how do you keep Arch Manning happy content positive yeah you know the the one thing with Arch that has been and I think I I really credit his family his mom and his dad you know his grandpa obviously his uncles you know I think they understand the process and so many times um you know we're in this world now of instant gratification right whether it's social media or the five-star recruit comes in and starts right away but if you really look back at the history of of Eli and and and Payton they didn't start their freshman year you know it took time as they developed because I think the one thing that the Mannings understand is when it's your time to play that they want to play really well right they they don't want to be learning on the job and so uh we've got a pretty good history and tradition of developing quarterbacks over the last 20 or so years going all the way back to Carson Palmer and all the guys that we've coached uh and and I think we've seen an immense amount of development and Arch we feel very comfortable um if Andor when he gets in the game he's going to play good football for us but I also think they understand the process of developing himself to be a championship caliber quarterback in the SEC and and on the national stage but also preparing and putting himself in the best position to uh for the National Football League Best QB who's the best quarterback you've ever been around oh man don't do that to me I've been around some really really good ones I I mean and and I can rattle them off from obviously uh you know from what you know Carson was you know Matt Castle was a backup with us that whole time and gets drafted in the NFL um to John David booty to Mark Sanchez you know we had Jake Locker for a couple years at Washington um to to you know what you know even when I got into the NFL Matt Ryan had a couple great years with us to Tua uh to M Jones and now we've got Quinn and they're all they've all different you know everybody's got a different skill set you know strengths and weaknesses and trying to train them the way we think they need to be trained but also play to their strengths to do the things that they do well so how about the best quarterback you've coached against o man that's another tough one that's tough uh in college football yeah one of the better games I've seen played and at least one of the better drives I coached against was in 2016 you know I I called the national championship game for one game coach had me call it and it was Bama against Clemson and that that that final drive by deshun Watson to go win the national title was a was a was a pretty tremendous drive but I'm gonna say the best one ever was Vince Young And in the national championship game we said in our locker room the guy was Superman that night and um you know what he did for Texas in that game and ultimately that final drive fourth and five 26 seconds to go uh to go make that play on that stage um he beat us you know and you know I know their team was really good but it really just felt like Vince Young beat us that Burnt Orange Suit night do you have a full suit like a burnt orange suit like pants jacket tie I don't have that yet I'm going to go with yet you know I I I definitely will will sometimes step outside the box with some of the suits that I wear and a and a full burn orange suit sounds like it's something that I'm supposed to be wearing so maybe maybe this year I'll get something like that done you know you get white belt white shoes but I would wait until like after the Georgia game maybe after a win then then maybe put on after the game put on after the game yeah yeah or for the next week maybe the next week who do you play after Georgia you got to play a cupcake after Georgia right I don't I have no I have no idea hold on hold on let me see all right you got so you got Oklahoma and then next week the following week you have Georgie you're at Vandy you should be able I don't know if the orange suit in Nashville is is like I feel like I should be weing orange suit at home for a home game okay how about uh Florida maybe maybe we'll look into that yeah that that'll be I got find somebody make that I don't think you can just go down to the your local your local mall and pick up a burn orange suit so probably take if you beat Georgia you'll have people waiting in line to make you a orange jumpsuit there um well good luck and I know how many times have you said to your team hey we got Colorado State let's not be thinking about Michigan because you open up with Colorado State here's the thing I've been doing I've been reminded them of that game by practicing at 2:30 in the afternoon uh that game is August 31st at 2:30 in the afternoon so it'll be about aund and so degrees temperature it'll be probably about I don't know 30 or 40 on our on our turf so putting them in the sun reminds him every day of that we play August 31st against Colorado State good good to talk to you again coach uh we'll hopefully catch up with you during the season good luck thanks Dan appreciate it buddy hook yeah that's Steve cesan