Steve Sarkisian's Police Escort To SEC Media Days Was His Aha Moment, Texas Is Here

DALLAS - As Steve Sarkisian and his contingent from Texas arrived at the local Dallas airport, it was right then that the Longhorns head coach realized how big this moment was, thanks to a police escort and sprinter van. 

If it felt like we've been waiting for years for the Longhorns to finally join the SEC and have their moment at the podium at media days, it's because we actually have been waiting that long. What started out as a report from the Houston Chronicle has flourished into Sarkisian representing Texas at the podium on Wednesday afternoon in Dallas. 

I think it was also destined to be that Sarkisian's first question would center around backup quarterback and SEC legacy Arch Manning, when the Texas head coach was asked about the recruiting pitch that meant sitting behind Quinn Ewers. 

In terms of when it actually felt like a massive deal to participate in the SEC Media Days, the Texas head coach mentioned that when he got off the plane this afternoon in Dallas. 

"I was just joking with him in the back. So we flew in this morning, we landed, and we get off the plane, we get in the Sprinter van and we got a police escort to media days. It just means more? It just means more right there. The fact that we had a Sprinter van with a police escort to come to this was tremendous."

All of it felt fresh, as Sarkisian did his best to mimic other coaches in the conference with a 15-minute filibuster about his team, along with the excitement of joining the SEC. Nothing about Wednesday felt awkward, because it almost felt too perfect. While rattling off reasons why Texas was such a great fit to join this league, the longhorns coach made it clear they were coming for a championship in their first year. 

AUSTIN, Texas - Steve Sarkisian at Darrell K Royal-Texas Memorial Stadium on April 20, 2024 in Austin, Texas. (Photo by The University of Texas Athletics/University Images via Getty Images)

Texas Coming For The SEC Championship In Year One

There will be no sitting around and waiting their turn, Texas should fill one of the two spots in Atlanta for the conference championship. And deep down, it sounds as if Sarkisian knows this, without being overly dramatic during his session with the media. 

"For us to sit here and say this is the deepest team we've had, probably the most talented team we've had in my four years here, I can unequivocally say that, and we lost some really good players a year ago, but we've got a very deep football team, one that we're excited about, and looking forward to watching them compete this fall," Sarkisian noted in his early speech. 

Nothing he said was wrong, and the fact that he felt comfortable enough to express this, coming off last season, is a sign that Steve Sarkisian is coming for the SEC title, now, not later. Standing at the podium on Wednesday, I saw nothing but confidence, which is exactly what you'd expect from any coach. 

AUSTIN, Texas - Head coach Steve Sarkisian of the Texas Longhorns leads the team to the field before the game against the Kansas State Wildcats at Darrell K Royal-Texas Memorial Stadium on November 4, 2023. (Photo by Tim Warner/Getty Images)

But for Sarkisian, there was something more to it. Maybe it's the fact that he stood on the sidelines with Nick Saban and experienced life in the conference with Alabama. Or, it could be the fact that his Longhorns walked into Tuscaloosa last season and stole the Tide's lunch money. 

Either way, there's a respect factor that Sarkisian talked about today, but don't take that as some sort of weakness. He's coming for it all, now.

"We won't do anything without having a level of respect of who we play, where we're playing them, the types of players that they have, the coaching that they have, and I think on the flipside of that, we have to go earn their respect," Sarkisian noted. "We're not going to get anything in this deal. Nothing is going to be free. We're going to have to go earn the respect of our opponents, the opposing coaches, the opposing fans, and that's going to be kind of on the forefront of what we do."

Steve Sarkisian Wouldn’t Be Here Without Nick Saban

Before he tore into his speech about the SEC and his Longhorns, Steve Sarkisian took the time to pay his respects to Nick Saban, who was sitting at the ESPN desk in the back of the room. The fact is, which Sarkisian explained, he wouldn't be here without the opportunity to resurrect his career after the debacle at USC. 

Getting a chance to learn from Saban, while figuring himself out at the same time, gave his perspective on what it would take to win again at a high level. Nobody knew the future, or if Sarkisian would get another opportunity, but he soaked up everything he could in Tuscaloosa, and it eventually led to the job at Texas. 

"I know everybody has been coming up talking about it, and you know you've impacted a lot of people who have been up on this stage," Sarkisian said at the podium. "No one have you impacted more than me. I would not be standing here today without you and what you've meant to my career, to my life, and I can't thank you enough, and the impact that you've had on our game has been second to none, and I just can't thank you enough.

"I want to be able to publicly do that to you, Coach. Thank you very, very much."

AUSTIN, Texas - Head coach Steve Sarkisian of the Texas Longhorns talks with head coach Nick Saban of the Alabama Crimson Tide before the game at Darrell K Royal-Texas Memorial Stadium on September 10, 2022. (Photo by Tim Warner/Getty Images)

And just like Nick Saban and his rise to fame in the SEC, we could see the same trajectory for Steve Sarkisian. This isn't just a welcome to the conference tour in 2024, as the Longhorns should be picked to win the SEC in their first year of play. 

Welcome back to the conference, Steve Sarkisian.