Texas’ Steve Sarkisian calls report on NFL interest ‘absolutely ridiculous’
Texas head coach Steve Sarkisian was not all smiles Saturday after the No. 22 Longhorns rallied from a 17-point, fourth-quarter deficit to win 45-38 at Mississippi State in overtime.
After a report from The Athletic was published early Saturday that Sarkisian's representatives have let NFL decision makers know that he would be interested in potential head coaching openings, he took time in his postgame press conference to passionately deny the claim.
"I'd love to touch on this, so bear with me for a second, because it really pisses me off that one person can make a report that, in turn, the entire media and sports world runs with as factual, to the point that my agency and my agents had to put a statement out, which they've never done historically," Sarkisian said. "CAA, Jimmy Sexton, Ed Marynowitz have never done that. But I had to do it to protect my locker room and my team, and I thought it was absolutely ridiculous.
"I thought it was completely unprofessional of that person to put that report out, and the fact that everybody ran with it is borderline embarrassing for the media. ... I've got a small circle when I make decisions on what I do and what I don't do, and nobody would ever speak on my behalf without me knowing. So, where that report came from -- I'd love to talk to that person, because it's absolutely ridiculous."
Sarkisian's agency, CAA, put out a statement on social media Saturday afternoon.
"Any reports regarding communications on coaching opportunities with NFL teams are patently false and wildly inaccurate," Jimmy Sexton and Ed Marynowitz of CAA said in the statement. "Sark is solely focused on coaching the University of Texas football team."
After beginning the season as the No. 1 team, the Longhorns are 6-2 (3-1 SEC) after consecutive road overtime wins over Mississippi State and Kentucky, who are a combined 0-9 in SEC games this season.
Sarkisian, unlike many college coaches tied to NFL openings, has coaching experience at that level. He was the Atlanta Falcons' offensive coordinator in 2017-18 before he was fired and returned to the college ranks as Alabama's offensive coordinator.
He is in his fifth season as Texas head coach and has a 44-19 record, leading the Longhorns to the College Football Playoff each of the last two seasons.