July 17, 2024; Dallas, Texas, USA; Texas head coach Steve Sarkisian delivered a speech on the Omni Resort in Dallas. Obligatory Credit score: Brett Patzke-USA TODAY Sports activities Steve Sarkisian has had a style of Southeastern Convention soccer earlier than, however earlier than he arrived at media day in Dallas on Wednesday, the scale of his present college’s switch to the convention hit him.
“So we flew on this morning, landed, bought off the airplane, bought right into a Sprinter van, and went to media day with a police escort,” Sarkisian instructed reporters, earlier than openly quoting the SEC’s official motto. “‘Does this simply imply extra?’ The truth that we had a Sprinter van and a police escort coming right here was fairly cool.
As America’s high soccer convention welcomes Texas and Oklahoma State to its ranks this summer time, the Longhorns’ head coach is certain to make it clear he does not wish to paint the league orange straight away.
“So far as our transition to the Southeastern Convention, I believe the important thing phrase is respect,” Sarkisian stated. “We’ve got plenty of respect for this convention. We’ve got plenty of respect for the groups, the coaches, the gamers and the followers. That is school soccer’s elite convention and we’re lucky to be part of it.
“We’re not going to do something with out respecting our gamers, the place we play, the kind of gamers we have now, our coaches, and I believe then again, to earn their respect, we’re not going to get something on this deal, we You need to earn the respect of your opponent, the opposite group’s coach, the opposite group’s followers, that is it.
Sarkisian, a former Washington and Southern California head coach, served as Nick Saban’s offensive analyst at Alabama in 2016 and as Nick Saban’s offensive coordinator in 2019 and 2020, then in Austin. Take over. Regardless of retiring final winter, Saban attended SEC Media Days and Sarkis expressed his gratitude to the longer term Corridor of Famer for serving to save his profession.
“I would not be standing right here right now with out you and what you have meant to my profession, my life, and I am unable to thanks sufficient. Your affect on our sport is second to none and I am unable to thanks sufficient.” ,” Sarkisian stated to Saban. “I would like to have the ability to do that to you publicly, Coach.”
As for Saban’s earlier declare that Texas “is not going to run the SEC,” Sarkisian joked, “Yeah, I’ll have to speak to him about that.”
Texas is coming off its greatest season in additional than a decade to hitch the SEC. The Longhorns reached the School Soccer Playoff for the primary time, however misplaced to Washington within the semifinals. They introduced again quarterback Quinn Ewers and had Payton and Eli’s nephew Archie Manning ready within the wings.
“We have been blessed to teach some actually good quarterbacks. We have been blessed to have been doing this for many years,” Sarkisian stated of his program. “We’re lucky to have some actually good quarterback rooms, and I believe the Manning household is aware of that very properly.
“I believe they educated Archie to place himself in the perfect place to attempt to play in the perfect league in America after which in the end put himself in the perfect place to additional his profession within the NFL.”
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