The Horns’ head coach offered an aggressive denial of the coaching rumors swirling around Austin this season.
For the second time this season, Texas head coach Steve Sarkisian is swatting away rumors that he’s leaving the Longhorns.
Last month it was Sarkisian’s agents shutting down rumors of their client’s supposed interest in an NFL job. Now, Sarkisian is addressing the rumors himself.
Sarkisian began his weekly SEC teleconference with reporters by aggressively contradicting rumors of his interest in leaving Austin, calling them “absolutely false” and saying he’s “not going anywhere.”
“Something [has been] bothering me now over the past few weeks, and that is people reporting or insinuating that there’s a possibility I could leave the University of Texas,” Sarkisian said on Wednesday. “That is absolutely false and untrue. I’m not going anywhere. Never do I do this because I never want to be a distraction, so I never address these things. But at this point now, I feel that it is important that I do this, because it’s important for our team.”
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The Athletic reported in October that Sarkisian’s representatives had reached out to NFL teams to let them know he’d be interested in potential head coach openings. In the report, the Tennessee Titans were specifically mentioned.
Then on Saturday, ESPN studio analyst Desmond Howard suggested a “mutual parting of the ways” is in store for Sarkisian and the Horns at the end of the season.
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Sarkisian personally denied those reports on Wednesday.
“I’ve had no discussions, not with my agent, not with the university, not with any other school, not with any NFL team, about ever going anywhere else,” Sarkisian said.
“If you have a question about my future, call me or call Chris Del Conte, our athletic director, and we can set the record straight for you.
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Sarkisian and the Longhorns are coming off a loss against Georgia on Saturday, Texas’ third loss of the season and one that severely dinged its chances at making the College Football Playoff – but didn’t doom them altogether.
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Texas has remaining games against Arkansas and No. 3 Texas A&M and must win out for a chance at its third consecutive postseason berth.
Read Sarkisian’s full comments below.
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