Texas Football: Bob Stoops has words of optimism for Steve Sarkisian

Feelings are starting to settle in for Texas football fans and around the media landscape surrounding expectations for the program this fall after the hire of new head coach Steve Sarkisian. Back on Jan. 2, Texas replaced former fourth-year head coach Tom Herman with Sark, as he is now the fourth person to hold that position in the past decade.

There is a feeling of rejuvenation and excitement on the Forty Acres that wasn’t present the past few offseasons. Herman didn’t post a bad record by any means in the last three seasons, but the volatility he caused on the field and on the recruiting trail largely led to his demise with the Longhorns.

And a few months back, the Longhorns made what seemed to be a controversial hire at the time in the former Alabama Crimson Tide offensive coordinator/reigning Broyles Award winner Sark. But since early January, Sark has instilled a good amount of confidence in the direction of this program.

Those feelings about Sark and the Longhorns look to be shared by a number of high-profile names around the college football landscape. In an interview with Colin Cowherd on “The Herd” this week, former Oklahoma Sooners head coach Bob Stoops gave his thoughts on the hiring of Sark and the state of the Texas program.

Bob Stoops voices optimism for Texas football and HC Steve Sarkisian

This interview could’ve gone any number of ways since the Longhorns and Sooners obviously have a long and heated rivalry. But it was nice to hear Stoops have some kind and optimistic words as far as Sark and expectations for the Longhorns in 2021 were concerned.

He stated that he feels like this isn’t a rebuilding job that Sark is taking on since the Longhorns have a lot of talent already present on the roster. Stoops feels that there is legitimate potential for Texas to make some noise in the Big 12 this fall, and move more into contending on the national scene in years to come.

Texas has found a spark on the recruiting trail and by way of the NCAA Transfer Portal since Sark was hired back on Jan. 2. The summer months could be busy too given that official visit season is set to resume next month around the college football recruiting landscape.

Herman and the Longhorns finished up last season with a record of 7-3 (5-3 Big 12), including a dominant Alamo Bowl win over the Colorado Buffaloes. Sark and the Longhorns just wrapped up spring ball back on April 24, and are now looking forward to the regular season opener against Louisiana at home on Sep. 4.