Texas coach Steve Sarkisian keeps play-calling duties after No. 1 Longhorns lose to Oklahoma
Archived — this story has rotated out of today’s deck. It is kept here in full.
The gist
Texas coach Steve Sarkisian said he won't change offensive play caller or special teams duties after a 27-24 loss to Oklahoma.
The defeat dropped Texas from No. 1 and renewed questions about his dual role.
Background
Steve Sarkisian is head football coach and offensive play caller for the Texas Longhorns, and a former offensive coordinator at Alabama. Texas entered the Oct 10 game against Oklahoma ranked No. 1 but lost 27-24 at the Cotton Bowl in Dallas, with Oklahoma scoring off a blocked punt and an interception return. The loss revived questions about Sarkisian holding both the head coach and play-caller roles, a topic he has faced for a second straight year, and transfer-portal additions meant to fix a previously unproductive offense had not yet produced a reliable running game through five games.
How it unfolded
- Oct 10, 2026No. 1 Texas lost 27-24 to Oklahoma in the Red River Rivalry at the Cotton Bowl in Dallas before 92,100 fans, on Tate Sandell's walk-off 47-yard field goal. Oklahoma scored 14 points off a blocked punt recovered in the end zone and a 42-yard interception return by safety Peyton Bowen.
- Oct 11, 2026Sarkisian said he is not considering changes at offensive play caller ("Not a chance") or to special teams coordinator Jeff Banks' responsibilities ("No").
- Oct 12, 2026Texas fell from No. 1 in both major polls after the loss.
- Oct 13, 2026Sarkisian was named to the Dodd Trophy midseason watch list.
- Oct 15, 2026Sarkisian held media availability ahead of the Florida game; his wife Loreal Sarkisian posted an emotional message about Nick Saban and Miss Terry at the premiere of Saban's documentary in Tuscaloosa, Alabama.
- Oct 16, 2026Sarkisian said he still likes his offense, excusing its 80th national ranking and calling the team's Wednesday workout one of its best practices of the season.
Who’s saying what
- Official
- Sarkisian said Oklahoma made the plays it needed, that Texas is "not dead" and will be OK, and that he won't change his play-calling role or Banks' special teams duties.
- Caution
- The Houston Chronicle's Kirk Bohls called the loss one of the ugliest offensive performances of the Sarkisian era and an alarming trend, noting a loss to unranked Florida last year kept Texas out of the playoffs.
- Analysts
- Sarkisian acknowledged frustration with penalties and kickoffs going out of bounds two weeks in a row, saying it "hasn't been good enough" and he must find a way to get his specialists playing with more confidence.