Since arriving in the SEC, Steve Sarkisian has checked off nearly every conference opponent at least once. The one holdout is Georgia, the program that has become the clearest comparison point for what Texas is trying to build.
That’s what makes the matchup so interesting. The Bulldogs have answered Texas’ 2019 Sugar Bowl win - the game after which Sam Ehlinger said Texas was “back” - with three straight victories, including the 2024 game in Austin and then the SEC Championship a few weeks later. Georgia has been the one SEC foe Sarkisian still hasn’t solved.
There’s plenty of mutual respect between Sarkisian and Kirby Smart, and the Texas coach has clearly taken cues from the way Georgia has been constructed. The offensive styles aren’t the same.
Smart leans on a traditional pro-style attack that starts with the run, while Sarkisian is not a run-first play-caller. Even so, the passing game in Austin is designed to create room for the ground game, much like it does in Athens.
That part matters, because both coaches understand the same basic truth: in the SEC, you have to win up front. Texas spent the offseason trying to strengthen the line of scrimmage, and for good reason. As 2025 showed, Sarkisian’s offense without a competent run game is not set up for success.
Georgia has already lived through something similar. Just two years ago, the Bulldogs finished the 2024 season ranked 102nd nationally in rushing offense.
The roster-building approach also lines up. Texas has been more aggressive in the transfer portal, bringing in larger portal classes than Georgia. But both programs are built around the same core idea: recruit hard, keep your best players, and keep adding talent.
Sarkisian has not moved away from high school recruiting, either. He continues to use the prep ranks as the base of the roster and then fills in the rest through the portal, the same broad formula that has helped define Georgia.
The parallels extend to defense, too. The hiring of Will Muschamp as Texas’s defensive coordinator only adds to the resemblance, especially since Muschamp once held that same role at Georgia. But even before Muschamp returned to Austin, Sarkisian had already made it clear what he wanted on that side of the ball.
Texas has built around a dominant defensive front. It didn’t take long for that to show up with NFL-level talent on the interior, with Byron Murphy and T’Vondre Sweat wrecking opposing offensive lines. Now Colin Simmons gives the Longhorns a future NFL first-round draft pick off the edge.
Even with Pete Kwaitkoski as defensive coordinator, Texas was able to stop the run and create more chances for a dangerous pass rush. That has been part of the Longhorns’ identity for a while now, and it fits neatly with the larger picture: Sarkisian has been building Texas in a way that looks a lot like Kirby Smart’s Georgia.
In Other News...
Texas Just Made Another Serious Move For An Elite 2027 Guard
Texas is lining up a pair of important September official visits as it keeps pressing for help in the 2027 backcourt. Four-star guard Justin Wise, a North Oconee High School product from Georgia, is set to be in Austin on Sept. 5, while Beckham Black also has a trip on the calendar later in the month as the Longhorns continue to work one of the most watched recruitments in the class.
Blacks visit carries extra weight because Texas is chasing the current No. 1 player in 2027, and the Longhorns are in the mix with other major programs already involved. Both guards have offers on the table, and with the recruiting process still unfolding, September gives Texas a chance to make a real impression before either one starts narrowing things down. [Read more 🡒]
Texas Fall Camp Could Expose One Real Threat To Title Hopes
Texas enters fall camp with the kind of expectations that turn every practice rep into a referendum on the season ahead. The Longhorns have enough talent to talk about a national title, but a handful of unsettled jobs still need answers before the roster starts to look like one built for that kind of run. Running back, tight end, left guard, safety and linebacker all feature real competition, and the staff will spend August sorting out which players can turn depth into dependable production.
The most important part is that these are not empty battles for the sake of summer drama. At running back, the rotation could be shaped by how much room there is for a freshman to force his way into the picture. At tight end, the competition is wide enough that no one can assume the job is settled. On defense, the secondary and linebacker group both have spots where the margin is thin, and the answers there will say plenty about how ready Texas is to handle the pressure that comes with championship expectations. [Read more 🡒]
Texas Has One Fall Camp Battle That Could Shape Everything
The biggest question in Texas secondary this fall is not just who starts, but who is ready to hold the whole thing together once the Longhorns turn the page to 2026. With several key pieces gone, senior safety Jelani McDonald is the lone proven returnee, and the rest of the room is being rebuilt around younger options and a transfer addition in Bo Mascoe. For a defense that has leaned on veteran continuity in the back end, this is the kind of camp competition that can quietly shape everything.
Jonah Williams, Xavier Filsamie and Jordon Johnson-Rubell are all in the mix for meaningful snaps, but the most intriguing development may be the arrival of top cornerback recruit John Meredith III after his early enrollment. Texas has also been sorting through a few different layers of competition, including a backup safety battle behind McDonald and a starting corner job that could still swing before the opener. The Longhorns do not need every answer today, but they do need this group to start looking like a secondary with a future. [Read more 🡒]