After getting outcoached in Georgia, should Texas coach Steve Sarkisian be on 'Hot Seat'?

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It was a tough night for Texas coach Steve Sarkisian in Athens, GA. The Longhorns were dominated by the Georgia Bulldogs, 35-10. It was Sark’s worst loss as the Longhorns head coach. After starting the year as the Preseason No. 1, Texas looks likely to miss the college football playoff. Should Sark’s job by on the line?

Saturday night in Georgia, Bulldogs coach Kirby Smart totally outcoached Sarkisian and the Texas staff. Georgia was better than Texas in all phases. The UGA schemes were better, the game-plan was better and the play-calling was better.

But Smart also “out-smarted” Sark a few times. No greater example than the surprise onside kick after Georgia had reestablished an 11 point lead. Obviously, Smart and staff had seen a weakness in the Texas kickoff coverage team they were confident they could exploit. And did they ever. The ‘Dawgs recovered the onside kick, marched to a touchdown against an exhausted UT defense and put the game away.

Sarkisian’s play-calling questioned

Sark’s play-calling has come into question several times this season. Even last season a few times. The coach’s response is logical. “That’s why I got hired. I was a really good offensive coordinator,” Sark said in October. “If that’s one of your strengths, I’m always going to tap into strength that I have and I think being a play-caller on offense is one of my strengths.”

But therein lies the rub. If Sark was hired because he was a great play-caller (and he was), then what happens if he isn’t anymore? There is a lot of tape on Sarkisian’s offense and all offenses are figured out eventually. Does Sark adjust? Of course, but are they the right adjustments? Does his offense evolve fast enough?

Is Texas recruiting the right way?

It isn’t just play-calling either. It is obvious, based on Texas three losses to Georgia over the past year, that Smart is out recruiting Sarkisian in trenches. The Bulldogs have dominated the line of scrimmage on both sides of the ball two years in a row.

Texas NIL fund is famously rich. But it’s not like Georgia, or other big SEC programs, are far behind. Is Smart and staff allocating funds better? Texas lost a huge recruiting battle this summer for one of the best offensive linemen in the 2026 class in Felix Ojo. UT rarely pays over market value for players. But should they be spending more on the lines?

At one point this summer, lost nine big recruiting battles in a row. It is a huge reason Texas isn’t ranked higher in the 2026 recruiting rankings. Texas is currently around 8th, depending on the service you subscribe to. Two of those losses were to Georgia and two were to the Aggies. Obviously, Texas has one some recruiting battles too. Like with Arch Manning, whose second choice was UGA. But not as many recently.

Occasionally, Texas will open up the NIL bank for a rare talent, like they did with Justus Terry last year. Terry said after he signed with the Horns it was a “straight-up better NIL packaged” offered by Texas than (ironically) Georgia. Terry should be great at Texas, but he’s not a lineman. The Terry signing was a huge reason Texas had the No. 1 2025 recruiting class.

And certainly signing the No. 1 class is a huge point in Sark’s favor. But time will tell if the recruits in that class fill the right holes and provide the most complete team.

Sarkisian’s coaching staff

Defensive coordinator Pete Kwiatkowski’s defense has gotten a lot of praise over the past two seasons, but they give up huge plays at the wrong time. It happened last year in both games against Georgia and against Ohio State in the CFP semifinal. Georgia gashed Texas for almost 400 yards using a balanced, yet explosive offense last night.

Early in Kwiatkowski’s tenure at Texas, the problems on defense were a hot topic among the media and fans a like. It was shredded and the schemes at times were baffling. An upgrade in talent after the Tom Herman era has helped. But the Texas defense should be even better than it is.

Kyle Flood is seen as an offensive line legend. His lines at Alabama were historic. But the offensive line is a disaster this year. Last year, the OL had five pro prospects, but they were still manhandled by Georgia twice. Especially in the first game in Austin last October.

Is Sarkisian wasting Arch Manning?

Logically, Manning will be the Texas starting QB for two years. If Texas’ season ends without a playoff appearance this season, then 50% of that is wasted. Sark’s reputation, from his early days at USC on, has been built on being a QB guru. The reason Manning came to Texas was because he felt Sark was the best at getting QBs ready for the NFL.

But you could and should have a lot of questions about Manning’s development. On the surface, it seems like he’s going through the natural growing pains for a new starting QB and he has certainly improved some as the season has gone on.

But there are dozens of QBs ahead of Manning around the country that are either younger or less experienced. Manning is behind where he should be. None of them were the No. 1 ranked recruit in their class.

What’s next for Sarkisian and Texas?

The chances of Texas athletic director Chris Del Conte moving on from Sarkisian this season or in the offseason are zero. And he shouldn’t … yet. But hold your breath for a flood of transfers out of Austin if the Longhorns fail to make the CFP.

Going into next season, you see a lot of the bigger college football media types saying things like, “Is this a must year for Sarkisian?” or “Is it national title or bust for Sark?” After this season, they are natural questions.

Sark should get the entire Manning tenure to prove he’s the coach Texas fans hope he is. But if 2026 resembles 2025, then the Texas brass might have some tough decisions to make. Obviously, one question they would have to answer will be, is there a better viable replacement available?

While Texas is a top five premier job in the nation, they won’t just be able to hire whoever they want. Most coaches that aren’t Georgia or Ohio State have questions about them too. James Franklin got Penn State to the semifinals last year just like Sarkisian did. He was fired by midseason. But if there’s not a better fit out there, then Texas will with Sark until the math says move on.

This article originally appeared on Longhorns Wire: Should Texas Football coach Steve Sarkisian be on the ‘Hot Seat’?

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