Steve Sarkisian's Texas is now a tyrant while Michigan withers

Steve Sarkisian has changed the culture of Texas football, one step at a time.
In the past, the Texas Longhorns only served grilled food and no steak. Today, they serve first-class beef.
NCAA investigators will find that the Michigan football team is a shadow of the team it was under Jim Harbaugh.

ANN ARBOR, Michigan – Jaydon Blue’s calluses remind him of the work it takes to toughen his skin.

You don’t get calluses by dipping your hands in baby oil. Like any day laborer, these Texas Longhorns get their calluses by working hard.

Blue should know. The junior running back from Texas has played for coach Steve Sarkisian long enough to know what it took to toughen up this program.

“We’ve trained in 100-plus degrees. In the winter, we probably trained in -1 or 4 degrees. That’s what causes calluses,” Blue said Saturday after contributing to No. 3 Texas’ 143-yard rush in a 31-12 win over No. 9 Michigan. “We value toughness.”

What a development for Texas (2-0).

Texas football now has the right cattle to go with its hat

It used to be that the Longhorns always buckled when the going got tough. For too long, Texas struggled through mediocrity despite boasting Blue Star talent and two-star toughness.

College football fans laughed at a failed program that was all about hot air.

Lots of sizzling, no steak.

No longer.

Today, Texas has Grade A beef.

In his fourth season, Sarkisian oversees a well-rounded program with no obvious deficiencies.

“We weren’t really trying to prove anything here,” Sarkisian said casually after watching his team pressure Michigan for four quarters. “We wanted to play our brand, our style of football.”

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The loss at the Big House reminded us what Sarkisian’s brand of Texas football looks like.

The Longhorns are fast. They have playmakers. They have solid tacklers. They have a quarterback with big arms and a cool head.

And yes, they are tough. Much tougher than Michigan that day.

Michigan won the national championship with a stingy defense, a tough offensive line and a coach who wore pleated khakis to work. Jim Harbaugh’s dad pants fit the mold of a program built on a hard hat and toolbox mentality. Harbaugh left for the NFL in January. A whole lot of talent followed him to the pros.

Michigan was unable to adequately compensate for its losses, while the NCAA’s toothless investigators were slow to conduct their investigations.

What will these irresponsible NCAA suits find? Well, first of all, a team that is a shadow of what it was last season.

Texas has defeated the defending champions.

“When things get tough, we can do our best,” Blue said.

Years after the infamous bus ride, Steve Sarkisian’s Texas bully Michigan

Things got tough for Texas in the preseason when two running backs suffered season-ending injuries, including top prospect CJ Baxter.

But Texas has brought back four experienced offensive linemen. These guys create running lanes wide enough that a Longhorns fan in cowboy boots could scurry through the gap.

When Texas reached the red zone on its second touchdown drive, freshman tailback Jerrick Gibson and his veteran O-line handled the final 20 yards. Gibson followed a cavalcade of Texans blockers and ran 7 yards unchallenged into the end zone to cap a 76-yard touchdown drive.

“For a young runner,” Sarkisian said, “there’s nothing better than running the ball when you don’t see any paint right in your face.”

Gibson had two colors in mind: the white Texas jerseys of the men paving his path and the open green turf.

Texas’ offensive line is made up entirely of juniors and seniors. These linemen are between 6’3″ and 6’5″ tall and weigh between 300 and 330 pounds.

They’re road graders. They kept quarterback Quinn Ewers clean while they dismantled Michigan. They made their running backs’ jobs easy.

Jake Majors, the senior center, shrugged.

“That’s what we’re doing,” he said. “That’s the new standard. We’re scoring touchdowns.”

Majors stepped in to enjoy Sarkisian to the fullest. He was the starter in Texas’ infamous 30-7 loss to Iowa State in 2021. The Cyclones outgained Texas by 269 yards that day. Texas allowed four sacks.

On the subsequent bus ride, assistant coach Bo Davis went on a tirade full of profanities and anger.

“You think this is a (fucking) joke?!” Davis said, dropping many more barbs.

And no, Davis didn’t use the word “damn it.” Something more colorful than that.

Sarkisian supported Davis after a video of his outburst was leaked online. Davis left Texas’ staff after last season and went to LSU.

By this time, Sarkisian had already transformed the culture step by step.

Blake Toppmeyer is the USA TODAY Network’s national college football columnist. Email him at [email protected] and follow him on Twitter. @btoppmeyer.

Subscribe to read all his columns. Also listen to his podcast SEC Football Unfiltered., and newsletter, SEC Unfiltered.

Texas football now has the right cattle to go with its hat

Years after the infamous bus ride, Steve Sarkisian’s Texas bully Michigan

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