We have seen this time and time again; head coaches simply cannot juggle the responsibilities that being a head coach entails alongside the offensive and/or defensive playcalling.
As Texas Longhorns fans, we have repeatedly called for head coach Steve Sarkisian to finally let go of the offensive playcalling, despite being touted as an "offensive genius," so that he could focus on the games as a whole and the umbrella that being a head coach actually encompasses.
And, after the atrocious performance that the Horns just put up against the Oklahoma Sooners, blowing what should have been a sure win in the Red River Rivalry, it has to finally be cemented that it is time for Sarkisian to hand over offensive playcalling.
An upset loss in the Red River Rivalry should be a reckoning for the Longhorns
There have been moments throughout the last five years in which the Texas offense has fallen short time after time, and people have called for Sarkisian to hand over play-calling. And no, I'm not saying Kyle Flood is the guy.
Flood is currently the technical offensive coordinator, but is more literally just the offensive line coach. So, he's virtually a figurehead as the OC, not an actual play-calling OC like many (if not most) collegiate programs have on their staff.
Despite his title, no matter what you might assume, Flood doesn't call any of the offensive plays; Sarkisian does.
So, when you see Manning simply lost in the backfield or wideouts like Cam Coleman and Ryan Wingo running routes to seemingly nowhere, it's on Sarkisian, not on Flood. It is on the head coach, who is unable to let go of control of the offense.
The biggest opinion-solidifying defense for this argument was the inability of Manning to run the ball against Oklahoma.
It had nothing to do with Manning's physical or in-game abilities. It was the fact that it genuinely looked as though he was being told not to do so. There were numerous – no, countless – plays where he had 10+ yards in front of him, and Manning threw the ball away instead of rushing for at least a few yards of gain.
Yet, until it truly looked like Manning to the ball and the game into his own hands, he kept simply throwing the ball away when he had at least a few yards of gain wide open in front of him.
We can't blame Flood, because the O-Line was honestly doing its job. We can't even blame AJ Milwee, the Horns' QB coach. No, the blame must go on Sarkisian, who is demanding to call the offensive scheme while juggling every other ball that enters his court.
This is nothing, ultimately, against Sarkisian. This just isn't the day and age when you can be an offensive play-calling head coach and succeed at the highest level. We even saw it back in 2012 when National Championship-winning Texas head coach Mack Brown finally admitted he needed to hand over offensive play-calling to Major Applewhite.
Sarkisian has to throw up his hands and give the playbook to someone else, because right now, he has too much on his plate, and we saw that play out in the Red River Rivalry.
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