Texas football dodges bullet with Tashard Choice declining Rams offer

One of the most prominent position coaches on head coach Steve Sarkisian’s staff with the Texas football program was reportedly courted by an NFL team recently with an offer to take his talents to the next level.

According to a report from Horns247 on March 2 (paid content), second-year Texas running backs coach Tashard Choice recently turned down an offer for the same role from the Los Angeles Rams. Choice reportedly received the offer for the running backs coach position with the Rams in the NFL after Ra’Shaad Samples left head coach Sean McVay’s staff to join the Arizona State Sun Devils earlier this offseason.

Samples was the Rams’ running backs coach for the 2022 season. He was hired away from the Rams by new Arizona State head coach Kenny Dillingham a few months ago as their wide receivers coach/passing game coordinator.

Moreover, this is not the first time that the Rams either hired or were interested in a Texas running backs coach. In fact, this has happened more than a couple of times in the last decade.

In 2020, the Rams were interested in hiring former Texas running backs coach Stan Drayton. Nothing would come of that interest for the Rams in Drayton, as the former Texas position coach would ultimately stick around until he took the head coaching job at his alma mater (Temple) last year.

And last year, the Rams hired the aforementioned Samples, who was an assistant wide receivers coach and recruiting coordinator at Texas in 2018.

Retaining RB coach Tashard Choice is huge for Texas football

As far as the interest in Choice is concerned, it does make a lot of sense that the Rams wanted him on its coaching staff. Choice is one of the hottest names around the college football coaching landscape among RB coaches in 2023.

Choice and the Longhorns are sending the top running back prospect to the NFL Draft in the 2023 class in junior All-American Bijan Robinson. That’s not to mention that Texas is also sending a potential day two or day three pick in the 2023 NFL Draft along with Bijan in senior Roschon Johnson.

A ton of success on the recruiting trail is a major plus on Choice’s resume. Texas signed the nation’s top-ranked running back in the 2023 class in five-star Orlando Edgewater (FL) standout Cedric Baxter Jr.

Texas also looks to be on the right track to land the top-ranked running back recruit in the nation for a second consecutive cycle. Earlier this week, Texas started trending for the elite five-star IMG Academy running back (the No. 1 2024 RB in the nation) Jerrick Gibson.

It goes without saying that it is massive for Sark and the Longhorns to retain Choice in 2023. He is one of the best recruiters on Sark’s staff, and he received a well-deserved raise from his previous base compensation of $550K.