The offseason noise between Texas and Texas Tech has been loud, but Joey McGuire didn’t spend his time at Big 12 Media Days tossing more fuel on the fire. Instead, he gave Steve Sarkisian something that sounded a lot closer to respect than rivalry.
McGuire, who had spent parts of the offseason trading jabs with Sarkisian, said he has a lot of respect for what the Texas coach has done in Austin.
"I have a lot of respect for [Sarkisian]," McGuire said. "What he's been able to do to be successful and sustain success, it's hard to do."
Then McGuire went a step further with a line that stood out immediately.
"Mack Brown was the last coach to be able to do what he's doing."
That’s a striking compliment from any coach. It lands even harder coming from the head man at an in-state program that pushed hard to get Texas back on its schedule.
McGuire’s comments also framed just how much Sarkisian has changed the conversation around the Longhorns. Texas has now reached the College Football Playoff in consecutive seasons, pushed itself back into the national championship picture and handled the SEC move in 2024 without losing its footing.
That kind of run is exactly why McGuire’s praise matters. Winning at Texas has never been the issue. Making it last long enough to feel normal again is the real test.
And in the middle of a summer that had already featured plenty of back-and-forth, McGuire delivered what may have been the clearest outside validation yet of the culture Sarkisian has rebuilt on the Forty Acres.
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Spears Jr. picked Texas over Arizona, Kentucky and LSU, a win that matters well beyond one signing. The Longhorns have already put together a strong recruiting class and added transfers, and this is the sort of addition that can change the way a roster looks in the seasons ahead, especially in a league where size and depth are never optional. [Read more 🡒]