Texas moving closer to hiring Gary Patterson on defensive staff

There is some pretty rampant speculation going on since the early start to this offseason for head coach Steve Sarkisian and the Texas football program concerning the potential addition to this staff of the former TCU Horned Frogs longtime head coach Gary Patterson. After TCU parted ways with Patterson earlier in the fall, it looked like he could be one of the more appealing coaches on the open market.

The first thought for Patterson would obviously be another head coaching job. And it would appear that would be one of his top options early in his offseason. But there is also another looming opportunity that could be great for Sark and the Longhorns. It could also be a good first step for Patterson after his TCU departure this fall.

Texas appeared to be at least in contact with Patterson for the last couple of weeks in regards to joining the coaching staff in some capacity likely on the defensive side of the ball. The initial thought was that Patterson could essentially name his salary and his job title.

A lot of Texas fans likely would want Patterson to be the next defensive coordinator, essentially replacing either Jeff Choate, Pete Kwiatkowski, or both.

But if that were to be the case early in the Longhorns offseason, we likely would’ve seen Sark part ways with Kwiatkowski and/or Choate already. It wouldn’t make too much sense to hold onto these two a few weeks after the conclusion of the season.

Texas football continuing to make moves with Gary Patterson?

Kwiatkowski especially doesn’t have many direct ties in terms of relationships to top targets and commits in the Longhorns 2022 and/or 2023 recruiting class. At least compared with someone like Choate, Sark, Kyle Flood, and/or Jeff Banks, Kwiatkowski seems to play a smaller role as a recruiter for the Longhorns staff.

Keeping Kwiatkowski around helps Texas to establish some level of continuity, as this squad saw three defensive coordinators in the last three seasons. Four DCs in four years would be a lot to adjust to for these Longhorns defensive players.

Moreover, this would give the indication that the Longhorns would want to bring on Patterson in some capacity as a defensive assistant or analyst. While he would likely be one of the higher-paid assistants and/or analysts on staff if he is hired by Texas, this doesn’t necessarily mean he will be taking Kwiatkowski’s role from him.

Moreover, there is a ton of talk surrounding the fact that Sark can completely shift the direction of this program under his guidance early this offseason if he’s able to hire Patterson along with landing the commitment he just got out of the NCAA Transfer Portal over the weekend. He landed the coveted quarterback Quinn Ewers last weekend, and now a lot of attention is turning to the potential of Texas hiring Patterson.

According to a report from 247Sports on Dec. 13 (paid content), Texas is likely set to meet with Patterson this week regarding a role on this coaching staff. It sounds like any role Patterson would have would come on the defensive staff with Kwiatkowski. What exactly that could be is unknown right now, but analyst certainly sounds like a large possibility.

Would adding Patterson as a defensive analyst really move the needle for Texas?

For talent evaluation, it certainly could help. But for the Longhorns to truly move the needle for the defense altogether next year, Patterson would probably have to be brought on board as a defensive coordinator.

Nonetheless, it would do nothing but help Sark and the Longhorns to be able to hire Patterson to the defensive coaching staff. He’s one of the better defensive minds in the country and could help this side of the ball even in more of a minor role like an analyst.

Texas finished up the 2021 season with a record of 5-7 (3-6 Big 12) following a win in the regular season finale last month over the Kansas State Wildcats. This staff is already off to a busy start this offseason, and that will only continue in the months ahead.