November 10, 2025 • 24 mins
In his weekly news conference, Texas head coach Steve Sarkisian provides updates on his team and upcoming opponent, the Georgia Bulldogs.
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Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:00):
I like, we thought came at a very good time
for us from a standpoint of getting some guys healthy.
Obviously we're pretty nicked up coming out of the Vanderbilt
game and getting our guys fresh, you know, traveling. He
kind of takes his toll on everybody.
Speaker 2 (00:17):
So I do think.
Speaker 1 (00:19):
Really spirited, really engaging, you know, meetings and practice this morning,
which was good for us. Obviously, this week is a
heck of a challenge, you know, going to play at
Georgia and the respect that we have for that program,
the job that they've done, not only this season but
over the years, and what what coach Smart has done.
I think they've been to four consecutive SEC championship games.
(00:42):
He's got a couple of national titles. They're a very
tough team to play at home. They're fifty one and
two in their last fifty three games at home, and
this year in particular. You know, I think that the
one thing that has been that has stood out is
them finding a way to make great adjustments and play
in the second half of games and continuing to fight.
You know, even in their one loss against Alabama, I
(01:04):
thought they played a tremendous second half, uh and gave
themselves an opportunity to win that ball game. So it's
gonna take sixty minutes. Uh, and it's gonna take all
three phases.
Speaker 3 (01:13):
Uh.
Speaker 1 (01:13):
This can't be a one dimensional game for us. We're
gonna need all three phases to play well. They've got
a very balanced offensive attack. I think Gunner Stockton has
done a fantastic job of running that offense and creating
explosive plays with his arms.
Speaker 2 (01:27):
With his legs.
Speaker 1 (01:28):
They're running the football effectively, you know. Defensively, you're seeing
them grow up week in and week out.
Speaker 2 (01:34):
Very physical front.
Speaker 1 (01:35):
There's a lot of new faces, a lot of new names,
but they all look very similar. So they've got got
a very talented football team. It's gonna be a great
challenge and we're looking forward to it.
Speaker 4 (01:45):
If you have a question, Steve over the last few
weeks out, so you got a lot of guys contribute
to victories. But I'm just curious, in a game like
this going to Georgia, how crucial is that you get
those other guys who step up, but also your Anthony Hills,
your arches, your you know, your headline guys that they
play their best lead.
Speaker 2 (02:05):
Yeah, No, I think it's important for everybody.
Speaker 1 (02:08):
You when when you play really good teams who are
really well coached, you never know what's gonna be the
play or the plays that are gonna be the deciding
factors in games like this, and so you know, everybody's
got a role in our organization. And for some guys, it's,
you know, seventy plays. You know, Anthony Hill, Michael Taff,
those guys are gonna play seventy five eighty plays this game.
(02:30):
Depending for other guys that might be one, two five plays.
You know, it could be a kick coverage, it could
be a critical block on a punt return, it could
be Matt Caldwell coming in and having to make that pass.
Speaker 2 (02:41):
And so everybody's got to get themselves ready to play.
Speaker 1 (02:44):
And I think our guys have learned that throughout our
season as we've grown that you never know what's gonna
be the player the plays that are going to be
the deciding factors, and so everybody's got to get themselves
ready to go.
Speaker 5 (02:56):
You mentioned what was it fifty You repeated similar numbers
ahead of your trip to Alabama a couple of years ago.
Is that one of the main things that you're telling, like, hey,
it's a challenge, but there are teams that have done
it before.
Speaker 1 (03:10):
No, I think we need to focus on this team
in this game. We're a different football team than we
were then. This is a different environment, different team, We're
playing different stadium. So we've got to we've got to
focus on what we need to do to play really
well this Saturday night at seven thirty.
Speaker 6 (03:28):
Their defense only eleven sacks this year. I only had
three Saturday minus two and turnover margin this year. What
do you see that maybe the numbers don't tell about them.
Speaker 1 (03:38):
Well, I see these three linebackers hit the quarterback and
it's all three of them, you know, And so whether
it's c J, Allen Wilson, Chris Cole, those guys have length,
They're they're elite rushers, you know, they're they're they're very
gifted at you know when they called even their run
pressures of getting to the quarterback and then in some
of the obvious passing down we know they have a
(04:00):
great package on third down.
Speaker 2 (04:02):
So you know, I think you know, one.
Speaker 1 (04:04):
Of the keys is as always you know, everybody wants
to look at sacks. You know what the other key is,
are you affecting the quarterback as much as it is
sacking the quarterback, and so hey, we've got to do
a great job of identifying those guys and minimizing their
ability to affect the game naturally. You know, we've I
think we have one turnover in the last four games
on offense, and so our ability to continue to protect
(04:26):
the ball I think is paramount. And then defensively, we've
got to find a way to get the ball off them,
whether it's off the quarterback, the runners, you know, affecting
the quarterback in the pocket, forcing Smarriant throws.
Speaker 2 (04:38):
That's when we're at our best, and the ball.
Speaker 1 (04:41):
Is of such a value to us that we've got
to continue to make that an emphasis this week throughout
the week.
Speaker 2 (04:47):
So that's an emphasis Saturday night.
Speaker 7 (04:50):
Coach. There's a few things in life that are certain
death taxes and Kirby Smart coming after the offense, right,
and so you talked about tightening up everything.
Speaker 2 (04:59):
Those are the only three. I got a few more
in my mind. I'm skidding. Sorry, sorry to interrupt you.
Speaker 7 (05:10):
No, that's okay. I'm going back to kind of what
Joe said too. You're locked in like you were against Alabama,
are you pretty comfortable that you guys are really super tight.
I mean, you had some time to kind of straighten
up things and get things in order. But is this
week more intense with a little tiny details.
Speaker 1 (05:25):
Well, I just think that, you know, as you grow
as a team throughout a season, you start to learn
the personality of the individual people in your building as
well as the overall personality of your organization and your team.
Every year it's a little bit different, you know, it's
it's not just a rinse and repeat and replicate, and
this is exactly.
Speaker 2 (05:44):
Who you are.
Speaker 1 (05:45):
You know, new leaders emerge, personalities change schematically, you evolve,
you find out you know just kind of who you are.
And I think we've learned a lot about our team
over that month of being on the road, and so
I think that our guys are in a space and
of a mind space of you know, what's important and
(06:06):
what's important is right in front of us, and that's
was this morning you know, of how important you know,
this morning's meetings were, how important this morning's walked through was,
how important this morning's practice was to get us ready
for tomorrow. And I think that this team has grown
into that, you know, I think early on we were
(06:26):
a little too focused on what was down the road,
and I think we've gotten a maturity of a team
now that is focused on the task at hand and
what's right in.
Speaker 2 (06:34):
Front of us.
Speaker 1 (06:34):
And that's what this game requires. This game against Georgia
requires all of its attention that it deserves. And that
attention isn't just Saturday night at seven thirty, it's the
attention that it deserves today at seven point fifteen this
morning in our first team meeting.
Speaker 8 (06:52):
Hey, coach, any potential updates on taff Wingo and McDonald
And then also just on the road. I know you'll
say you like to play on the road. You'd like
to get away from here, two and two on the
road the season those So what do you have to
do to maybe get better results in that compartment?
Speaker 3 (07:10):
Yeah?
Speaker 2 (07:10):
No, all those guys practice this morning looked great.
Speaker 1 (07:13):
I don't foresee any setbacks there, So feel good about that,
you know, I think at the end of the day,
you know, one of one of the key components on
the road is trying to minimize a self inflicted wounds.
And when you when you look at you know, the
two losses that we had, you know, we had opportunities
at Ohio State to change really change the complexion of
(07:35):
that game, and I think part of that is red
zone efficiency. Offensively, I think to the ball. You know,
we didn't win the turnover battle in either of those games,
so those are two main components there. I do think
in both those games there were things that to take
away from that I was proud of. I thought our
guys showed great poison composure late.
Speaker 2 (07:55):
In both of those games.
Speaker 1 (07:56):
We got the ball with an opportunity to either tie
or go win those games, and we didn't capitalize. But
I think we learned a lot about ourselves and our fight,
even though we were probably a more immature team at
those times. I think those games helped us later in
the year when we were in some of those other
tighter games on the road. So ideally starting a little
faster will help us. But again, this game is gonna
(08:18):
take all sixty minutes. It doesn't matter who gets the lead. Early,
as we found out playing these guys in the past,
that this is going to be a sixty minute game.
Speaker 2 (08:29):
What did you.
Speaker 8 (08:29):
See with the team and with Arch and with Wingo
that led to sort of this new role for him.
Speaker 1 (08:36):
I think this is what we always envisioned it would be.
So I don't think it's necessarily new. I think it's
just taking some time, you know, And that's okaying.
Speaker 2 (08:45):
Things take time. And what I'm.
Speaker 1 (08:48):
Happy about is that we're evolving and getting better as
the season's moving on. And that's a credit to those
players of working at their craft and and trying to
improve and trying to get better at whether it's understanding
timing or making plays on the ball, or trusting his
speed in Wingo's case, to really be electric with the
(09:09):
ball in his hands. And so that's just the growth
that I think a young offensive football teams had to
had to go through some of those growing pains. But
we're kind of getting on the other side of it now.
We need to continue to play better than that, and
that's that's the key for us, is that we can't
rest now.
Speaker 2 (09:24):
We've got to keep pushing to striving for more.
Speaker 9 (09:28):
Steve, can you talk a little bit about what makes
Georgia's pressures unique, Kirby's pressures unique, especially their double a
gap pressure and then they're three tight ends. What stands
out about them?
Speaker 1 (09:42):
They're good at it, you know, they they've got good people,
they've got good coaches, they call things at the right time. Uh,
they stem their fronts, you know, with really good timing.
I mean, all those things add up to those things
could be an issue for you.
Speaker 2 (09:57):
And the same thing.
Speaker 1 (09:58):
I think on the other side, they've got good players
and they use them well, you know, and so you
know that's a credit to their staff and the Kirby
and his staff aid to recruit the quality of players
that they have and then be utilizing the talent that
they do have.
Speaker 4 (10:15):
Yeah, Steve, last week you mentioned using the bye week
to kind of dig into some things that may be
causing y'all issues. Curious you know what you found out
about the team when you kind of did that.
Speaker 2 (10:24):
We had some issues and we got better at them.
Speaker 10 (10:28):
Thomas Hey's sarka Ethan Burke. He's been with you while.
Is this as efficient as you've seen him as a
pass rusher? And what accounts for that? Besides I think
he's healthier now.
Speaker 2 (10:38):
Yeah.
Speaker 1 (10:38):
No, I'm really proud of Ethan. You know, we he
he had a great offseason for us. He had a
great spring ball in summer, and I think one of
the areas that kind of can go a little unnoticed
because we always we always want to look at production.
His leadership has been fantastic. You know, that guy has
grown up a ton in our program, and uh, I'm
(11:00):
really happy for him that he's getting the production now.
The last few weeks, you know, he was he was
banged up pretty good there a little over a month ago,
and we were getting a really scaled down version of
Ethan Burke. But now that he's gotten healthy, he is
he is providing exactly what we need on that strong
side to be the player that he is. We know
what we're getting on the on the week side with
(11:21):
Colin and now to get it from the other side
with Ethan. I think they're they're a really good compliment
to one another in their style of play, and I
think they feed off of one another and and calling
speed rushes his ability to move the quarterback off the
spot has allowed Ethan to kind of do some of
that dirty work and mop up some of those things,
and so they work really well with one another that way.
Speaker 3 (11:46):
Hey, Steve, what's your un confidence level with this offensive
line the new in with the new incarnation of of
Colet left guard.
Speaker 1 (11:53):
Yeah, No, I think that it's you know, these guys
have all evolved and you know, our tackles, I think,
for the most part, have played pretty good this year.
Now can they get better? Of course, you know, we're
always trying to get those guys better. I've said about
the last you know, two to three weeks, we're getting
(12:14):
the best version of DJ Campbell that we've gotten since
we've been here. And you never know what an injury
can do for you. But with Cole being out two
different times this year, it's kind of pushed Connor Robertson
in at center and all he's done is play pretty
good for us. And so when when when Cole came
back to put him at left guard, I think it
(12:35):
gave everybody a little bit of sense of confidence, like, hey,
now now we really have some players in here that
have some experience that are playing as a unit rather
than as individuals. The offensive line is about a unit
and how do you play collectively together? And I thought
we were able to do that against Vanderbilt. I thought
they played really well. I don't know if there was
(12:55):
just some superhuman efforts where guys were just playing out
of their mind, but man, they.
Speaker 2 (13:00):
Played pretty good together.
Speaker 1 (13:02):
We picked up blitz Is much better than we had
all year, and I think that's a sign of maturity
and communication and trust that I think having those guys
in there, And I think that's probably the sense and
feeling that we have as a coaching staff, you know, and.
Speaker 2 (13:14):
Coach Flood myself.
Speaker 1 (13:16):
I think there's a real sense of trust in the
in the five that are out there right now that
they're gonna be able to execute at maybe a little
higher level than we were executing earlier in the season.
Speaker 11 (13:26):
Coach, you're saying to himself, with a lot of injuries
these past few weeks, now you've had the buy to self, scout,
how do you feel this group's gonna come out of
the buy as well as since that game in Starkville,
which young players in that group have been pressy the most.
Speaker 2 (13:38):
Well, let's start.
Speaker 1 (13:39):
With getting sixteen back, getting four back, Okay, getting seventeen
back healthy.
Speaker 2 (13:45):
I mean, those three guys are are factors for us.
Speaker 1 (13:47):
And and you know Grayson Littleton, you know, having you
know that as a true freshman playing the amount of
snap snaps he's playing, I think him having a bye
week to kind of get his body refreshed is big
for him. But all those guys that I touch on
affect what we do on the perimeter, because that's everybody
playing on the same accord, that's everybody you're working together.
(14:10):
That's the communication and communicating with confidence, and so I
do think Manny Jalen and Cad Phillips growing up, I
do think their play is affected by what we do inside.
You know, when you have to try to protect things inside,
that puts guys a little bit more on islands on
the perimeter. But I think if we can play as
one as a unit, we're pretty.
Speaker 2 (14:31):
Good back there.
Speaker 1 (14:32):
And so getting sixteen and four and seventeen, you know, healthy,
the emergence of Jonah, I think has been helpful for
us as well. So very confident in that unit and
looking forward to them play Saturday night.
Speaker 2 (14:45):
Front middle Danny, I'm Steve.
Speaker 12 (14:47):
Over the last couple of years, you you your players
have often said every week's the SEC championship game for us.
Just kind of having that attitude and that mantra help
now that these kind of three next next three games
are kind of maybe do or die.
Speaker 1 (15:00):
It's the way we've been the last three years, you know,
since we lost to Florida. The first bullet point when
I talked to the team about what it takes is
this is an SEC championship game, and that went back
now for the last month, and so this week's not
different that way. It's not like we're putting more into
it than that. It is what it is. You know,
(15:21):
if we want to play in an SEC Championship game,
gotta win Saturday night.
Speaker 2 (15:25):
It just is what it is.
Speaker 1 (15:26):
And so let's focus on what we need to do
today to make that happen.
Speaker 13 (15:30):
Roger Sark, you mentioned the names changed, but they kind
of look the same with George. Is that kind of
the ultimate compliment for a program to always look so consistently.
Speaker 1 (15:39):
Yeah, No, I think that what they do from a
recruiting standpoint, they know the body types, they know the
the athletic ability they're looking for and very specific by position,
and then and then ultimately the competitive.
Speaker 2 (15:55):
Spirit that those guys have.
Speaker 1 (15:57):
And it's a credit to Kirby, he's been the best
in our our industry for the last decade now.
Speaker 2 (16:02):
Of doing that is a lot.
Speaker 1 (16:03):
Of people have changed in or in and around the country.
Georgia has remained very consistent with their approach in recruiting,
with their approach and style of players that they look for.
UH and and to their style of play. They love
the tight ends, they recruit tight ends really well. They
love versatile linebackers, they recruit versatile linebackers really well. They
love length at corner. They recruit corners that are six
(16:26):
to one and taller. And so you can see the
consistency and their approach. And so one year that wave
of players leaves. I think that four first round picks
on defense. Here comes the next wave of guys that
all look a lot like the guys that just moved on.
And so credit to those guys, in credit to Kirby,
They've done a heck of a job.
Speaker 2 (16:45):
I think dynasty believe he says a lot.
Speaker 3 (16:51):
He really doesn't. Do you believe in that?
Speaker 14 (16:56):
Or do the Georgia still qualify as the dynasty pretty good?
Speaker 2 (16:59):
You know?
Speaker 1 (17:00):
I mean, I think the hard part is, you know,
we labeled dynasties that do you win a national championship
or not? And I don't know how easy that's going
to be to do year in and year out with
the model that we have. But their level of consistency
has been has been pretty high for the last decade.
And again credit to those guys. I don't know what
(17:21):
can constitutes a dynasty or not. These guys that played
for four straight SEC championship games and trying for five,
I think that's pretty good, you know, especially when a
lot of teams and coaches in our conference haven't played
for any.
Speaker 15 (17:37):
Yeah, coach, when facing a front seven with the speed
of Georgia's what gets emphasized in the week of practice
when it comes to reaching landmarks and outside zone or
what you need to do to be effective in a
quick screen game.
Speaker 2 (17:49):
Yeah, you know, I think that you know what they do.
Speaker 1 (17:52):
One is they have really good length across the board,
you know, from their front to their secondary to their corners,
and everything starts with them disrupting your timing, whether it's
timing at the line of scrimmage and them striking blockers,
to disrupting your route combinations, getting hands on receivers and
(18:13):
so it is it is vitally important that we do
play in sync in rhythm our run, timing at the
line of scrimmage, the timing with arch and the receivers
and and our route combinations. So I do think that
is an important factor in this game. That you know,
one of their main goals is disrupt your timing. You
got to try to keep your timing or or make
(18:34):
your your timing one of the weapons that you have
available to you, and so you could You've got to
try to create some of that timing, whether it's with
some of your formations, some of your motions, some of
your targets in the run game. You know that that
that can serve as a benefit for you because that
is a strength of theirs, for sure.
Speaker 14 (18:53):
Coach, like everybody in this room, I'm sure you watch
a lot of football Friday night and Saturday. What stood
out to you was that the trickery from USA? Was
it the catching Indiana? Was it the domination of tech?
What did you see?
Speaker 2 (19:03):
They went wow?
Speaker 14 (19:04):
On Saturday?
Speaker 2 (19:05):
You know, I think a couple of things stood out.
Speaker 1 (19:10):
One was, Man, there was a couple of great drives
at the end of these games, you know, and that's
what championship teams do. Teams that are trying to compete
for a championship, they find a way to win. And
I thought watching Indiana watching Oregon, those those are two
great drives on the.
Speaker 2 (19:25):
Road to to win those games.
Speaker 1 (19:28):
I think, you know, I saw I saw some trickery
across the board. I think people are a little more
comfortable people at this point, they've been tracked practicing trick plays.
Speaker 2 (19:36):
We better use them. Seasons coming to a close here
pretty soon, we better start calling some of this stuff.
Speaker 1 (19:43):
You know, Uh, I didn't get a chance to watch
everybody play all the time, but I think you can
start to see the you know, the the cream is
kind of rising to the top right now. You're starting
to see the teams that are getting better throughout the
season and starting to play that way. All in all,
college football is in a great space. That's what I
That's what I took out.
Speaker 2 (20:03):
Of this weekend.
Speaker 1 (20:04):
You know, it's a getting talked about a lot. You
guys are writing about it a lot. There's a lot
of really good teams that are that are fighting for spots,
and whether it's in their own conference or in the CFP,
I think it's it's very competitive. You know, you look
at our conference, you look at other conferences, and it's
not locked in who's playing for what yet, and so
(20:25):
it's great football. It's great entertainment, you know, and it's
it's high level football going on right now.
Speaker 2 (20:29):
So it was fun for me this weekend.
Speaker 3 (20:34):
Hey, Steve, In these games where you know your opponent
can more or less match up with your guys athletically,
what what's the key to game planning well under those circumstances.
Speaker 1 (20:44):
Try to put your players in the best position to
be successful. You know, I think that we we can
over lose sight of that.
Speaker 2 (20:50):
You know, sometimes you can.
Speaker 1 (20:52):
You can put in plays or defenses or or special
teams plays on a whiteboard that look good, But the
matchups matter, and so you're always trying to find favorable matchups.
You're always trying to put your players in position to
have success. And that's no different than any other game.
But again, you got to look at the matchups because
(21:13):
you've got to try to create favorable matchups.
Speaker 2 (21:15):
You got to try to create favorable angles.
Speaker 1 (21:17):
For yourselves, for yourself to create positive plays.
Speaker 2 (21:22):
It's not just about how does it look on a whiteboard.
Speaker 1 (21:24):
It's it's you know, really you know the circle on defense,
who is that guy, what number is he and what
is he good at compared to the circle that you
have on offense or defense, whatever it is. Of The
matchups definitely matter in games like this.
Speaker 6 (21:38):
Kirby said, he texted you on the way to the
game on Saturday morning. Is that normal number one? But
number two? How is your relationship with him maybe changed
in the last year and a half because you're in
the same conference now, or how has it grown?
Speaker 1 (21:51):
Yeah, he did text me Saturday morning. We're in a
couple of different group chats together, and Kirby and I
do text periodically. But he was on that ride from
Tupelo down to Starkville, which I had just done obviously
a couple of years ago.
Speaker 2 (22:04):
And that's one unique thing about the SEC.
Speaker 1 (22:06):
It's like, man, you always want to try to stay
close to stadiums, but it's hard to do that in
our in our conference, the way some of these towns
are set up. And so he checked in with what
I was doing. I said, well, I just got to
work out about how breakfast and watch you play Bud.
Speaker 2 (22:19):
So good luck, you know, see how it goes.
Speaker 1 (22:23):
But you know, again, I think honestly our relationship has
probably gotten closer since we've been in the league. We
have more things to talk about, you know. I think
one thing about him being the head coach at Georgia
and myself being the head coach at Texas, you know,
I think that that we have an opportunity to be
influential on trying to do what's best for our game,
(22:43):
not only in our conference, but in the state of
college football. And I think us being aligned on as
many issues as we can be aligned on, I think
is good for the sport, and so we try to
do that, and we're not going to agree on everything. Obviously,
he's a defensive head coach, so he's trying to get
all the rules in favor of the defense. I'm trying
to get him in favor of the offense. But in
the end, I have a ton of respect for Kirby
(23:04):
uh and the job that he does and and the
way that his teams play the game, and so a
ton of respect for him. I always love competing against him.
It's a great challenge and this week's no different time for.
Speaker 11 (23:17):
I know last year's team looked much different than this year's,
but as the result of the SEC championship from.
Speaker 3 (23:22):
Last season, a drive to you or your guys, is
there any sense of revenge?
Speaker 1 (23:26):
No, I just want to win Saturday night at seven
thirty and try to get to five and one in
conference play.
Speaker 2 (23:31):
That's really the extent of it.
Speaker 14 (23:33):
That's one of the left.
Speaker 13 (23:34):
So I keep been to a lot of historic college stadiums.
The last few years. Here's another one. You said you
haven't coached here. Can you at all appreciate that? Or
is it all about those sixty men?
Speaker 1 (23:44):
No, I definitely will appreciate it, and I hope our
players do too. You know, this is one of the
beauties of going into this conference, is the opportunity to
play in some of these some of these stadiums around
around the Southeastern Conference. And clearly they they do a
great job with their with their in game kind of
just energy from the fans to the players and the
(24:04):
whole thing.
Speaker 2 (24:05):
And at night, we all know what that is.
Speaker 1 (24:07):
And so I think inevitably for us is to hunker down,
take it in, and then we gotta we gotta fuel
one another. You know, we gotta lock arms, we gotta
go fight, We gotta go battle collectively together, we gotta.
Speaker 2 (24:19):
Stay enamor with us.
Speaker 1 (24:21):
But I'd be remiss if I didn't take it in,
if our players didn't take it in, because I think
that that's when teams can get overwhelmed. You got you
gotta embrace the moment, You got to embrace the the
environment that you're in, and then you gotta go fight
and you gotta go compete y'all, thank you.
Speaker 15 (24:37):
That is Long Warren's head coach, Steve Sarkegen
I like, we thought came at a very good time
for us from a standpoint of getting some guys healthy.
Obviously we're pretty nicked up coming out of the Vanderbilt
game and getting our guys fresh, you know, traveling. He
kind of takes his toll on everybody.
Speaker 2 (00:17):
So I do think.
Speaker 1 (00:19):
Really spirited, really engaging, you know, meetings and practice this morning,
which was good for us. Obviously, this week is a
heck of a challenge, you know, going to play at
Georgia and the respect that we have for that program,
the job that they've done, not only this season but
over the years, and what what coach Smart has done.
I think they've been to four consecutive SEC championship games.
(00:42):
He's got a couple of national titles. They're a very
tough team to play at home. They're fifty one and
two in their last fifty three games at home, and
this year in particular. You know, I think that the
one thing that has been that has stood out is
them finding a way to make great adjustments and play
in the second half of games and continuing to fight.
You know, even in their one loss against Alabama, I
(01:04):
thought they played a tremendous second half, uh and gave
themselves an opportunity to win that ball game. So it's
gonna take sixty minutes. Uh, and it's gonna take all
three phases.
Speaker 3 (01:13):
Uh.
Speaker 1 (01:13):
This can't be a one dimensional game for us. We're
gonna need all three phases to play well. They've got
a very balanced offensive attack. I think Gunner Stockton has
done a fantastic job of running that offense and creating
explosive plays with his arms.
Speaker 2 (01:27):
With his legs.
Speaker 1 (01:28):
They're running the football effectively, you know. Defensively, you're seeing
them grow up week in and week out.
Speaker 2 (01:34):
Very physical front.
Speaker 1 (01:35):
There's a lot of new faces, a lot of new names,
but they all look very similar. So they've got got
a very talented football team. It's gonna be a great
challenge and we're looking forward to it.
Speaker 4 (01:45):
If you have a question, Steve over the last few
weeks out, so you got a lot of guys contribute
to victories. But I'm just curious, in a game like
this going to Georgia, how crucial is that you get
those other guys who step up, but also your Anthony Hills,
your arches, your you know, your headline guys that they
play their best lead.
Speaker 2 (02:05):
Yeah, No, I think it's important for everybody.
Speaker 1 (02:08):
You when when you play really good teams who are
really well coached, you never know what's gonna be the
play or the plays that are gonna be the deciding
factors in games like this, and so you know, everybody's
got a role in our organization. And for some guys, it's,
you know, seventy plays. You know, Anthony Hill, Michael Taff,
those guys are gonna play seventy five eighty plays this game.
(02:30):
Depending for other guys that might be one, two five plays.
You know, it could be a kick coverage, it could
be a critical block on a punt return, it could
be Matt Caldwell coming in and having to make that pass.
Speaker 2 (02:41):
And so everybody's got to get themselves ready to play.
Speaker 1 (02:44):
And I think our guys have learned that throughout our
season as we've grown that you never know what's gonna
be the player the plays that are going to be
the deciding factors, and so everybody's got to get themselves
ready to go.
Speaker 5 (02:56):
You mentioned what was it fifty You repeated similar numbers
ahead of your trip to Alabama a couple of years ago.
Is that one of the main things that you're telling, like, hey,
it's a challenge, but there are teams that have done
it before.
Speaker 1 (03:10):
No, I think we need to focus on this team
in this game. We're a different football team than we
were then. This is a different environment, different team, We're
playing different stadium. So we've got to we've got to
focus on what we need to do to play really
well this Saturday night at seven thirty.
Speaker 6 (03:28):
Their defense only eleven sacks this year. I only had
three Saturday minus two and turnover margin this year. What
do you see that maybe the numbers don't tell about them.
Speaker 1 (03:38):
Well, I see these three linebackers hit the quarterback and
it's all three of them, you know, And so whether
it's c J, Allen Wilson, Chris Cole, those guys have length,
They're they're elite rushers, you know, they're they're they're very
gifted at you know when they called even their run
pressures of getting to the quarterback and then in some
of the obvious passing down we know they have a
(04:00):
great package on third down.
Speaker 2 (04:02):
So you know, I think you know, one.
Speaker 1 (04:04):
Of the keys is as always you know, everybody wants
to look at sacks. You know what the other key is,
are you affecting the quarterback as much as it is
sacking the quarterback, and so hey, we've got to do
a great job of identifying those guys and minimizing their
ability to affect the game naturally. You know, we've I
think we have one turnover in the last four games
on offense, and so our ability to continue to protect
(04:26):
the ball I think is paramount. And then defensively, we've
got to find a way to get the ball off them,
whether it's off the quarterback, the runners, you know, affecting
the quarterback in the pocket, forcing Smarriant throws.
Speaker 2 (04:38):
That's when we're at our best, and the ball.
Speaker 1 (04:41):
Is of such a value to us that we've got
to continue to make that an emphasis this week throughout
the week.
Speaker 2 (04:47):
So that's an emphasis Saturday night.
Speaker 7 (04:50):
Coach. There's a few things in life that are certain
death taxes and Kirby Smart coming after the offense, right,
and so you talked about tightening up everything.
Speaker 2 (04:59):
Those are the only three. I got a few more
in my mind. I'm skidding. Sorry, sorry to interrupt you.
Speaker 7 (05:10):
No, that's okay. I'm going back to kind of what
Joe said too. You're locked in like you were against Alabama,
are you pretty comfortable that you guys are really super tight.
I mean, you had some time to kind of straighten
up things and get things in order. But is this
week more intense with a little tiny details.
Speaker 1 (05:25):
Well, I just think that, you know, as you grow
as a team throughout a season, you start to learn
the personality of the individual people in your building as
well as the overall personality of your organization and your team.
Every year it's a little bit different, you know, it's
it's not just a rinse and repeat and replicate, and
this is exactly.
Speaker 2 (05:44):
Who you are.
Speaker 1 (05:45):
You know, new leaders emerge, personalities change schematically, you evolve,
you find out you know just kind of who you are.
And I think we've learned a lot about our team
over that month of being on the road, and so
I think that our guys are in a space and
of a mind space of you know, what's important and
(06:06):
what's important is right in front of us, and that's
was this morning you know, of how important you know,
this morning's meetings were, how important this morning's walked through was,
how important this morning's practice was to get us ready
for tomorrow. And I think that this team has grown
into that, you know, I think early on we were
(06:26):
a little too focused on what was down the road,
and I think we've gotten a maturity of a team
now that is focused on the task at hand and
what's right in.
Speaker 2 (06:34):
Front of us.
Speaker 1 (06:34):
And that's what this game requires. This game against Georgia
requires all of its attention that it deserves. And that
attention isn't just Saturday night at seven thirty, it's the
attention that it deserves today at seven point fifteen this
morning in our first team meeting.
Speaker 8 (06:52):
Hey, coach, any potential updates on taff Wingo and McDonald
And then also just on the road. I know you'll
say you like to play on the road. You'd like
to get away from here, two and two on the
road the season those So what do you have to
do to maybe get better results in that compartment?
Speaker 3 (07:10):
Yeah?
Speaker 2 (07:10):
No, all those guys practice this morning looked great.
Speaker 1 (07:13):
I don't foresee any setbacks there, So feel good about that,
you know, I think at the end of the day,
you know, one of one of the key components on
the road is trying to minimize a self inflicted wounds.
And when you when you look at you know, the
two losses that we had, you know, we had opportunities
at Ohio State to change really change the complexion of
(07:35):
that game, and I think part of that is red
zone efficiency. Offensively, I think to the ball. You know,
we didn't win the turnover battle in either of those games,
so those are two main components there. I do think
in both those games there were things that to take
away from that I was proud of. I thought our
guys showed great poison composure late.
Speaker 2 (07:55):
In both of those games.
Speaker 1 (07:56):
We got the ball with an opportunity to either tie
or go win those games, and we didn't capitalize. But
I think we learned a lot about ourselves and our fight,
even though we were probably a more immature team at
those times. I think those games helped us later in
the year when we were in some of those other
tighter games on the road. So ideally starting a little
faster will help us. But again, this game is gonna
(08:18):
take all sixty minutes. It doesn't matter who gets the lead. Early,
as we found out playing these guys in the past,
that this is going to be a sixty minute game.
Speaker 2 (08:29):
What did you.
Speaker 8 (08:29):
See with the team and with Arch and with Wingo
that led to sort of this new role for him.
Speaker 1 (08:36):
I think this is what we always envisioned it would be.
So I don't think it's necessarily new. I think it's
just taking some time, you know, And that's okaying.
Speaker 2 (08:45):
Things take time. And what I'm.
Speaker 1 (08:48):
Happy about is that we're evolving and getting better as
the season's moving on. And that's a credit to those
players of working at their craft and and trying to
improve and trying to get better at whether it's understanding
timing or making plays on the ball, or trusting his
speed in Wingo's case, to really be electric with the
(09:09):
ball in his hands. And so that's just the growth
that I think a young offensive football teams had to
had to go through some of those growing pains. But
we're kind of getting on the other side of it now.
We need to continue to play better than that, and
that's that's the key for us, is that we can't
rest now.
Speaker 2 (09:24):
We've got to keep pushing to striving for more.
Speaker 9 (09:28):
Steve, can you talk a little bit about what makes
Georgia's pressures unique, Kirby's pressures unique, especially their double a
gap pressure and then they're three tight ends. What stands
out about them?
Speaker 1 (09:42):
They're good at it, you know, they they've got good people,
they've got good coaches, they call things at the right time. Uh,
they stem their fronts, you know, with really good timing.
I mean, all those things add up to those things
could be an issue for you.
Speaker 2 (09:57):
And the same thing.
Speaker 1 (09:58):
I think on the other side, they've got good players
and they use them well, you know, and so you
know that's a credit to their staff and the Kirby
and his staff aid to recruit the quality of players
that they have and then be utilizing the talent that
they do have.
Speaker 4 (10:15):
Yeah, Steve, last week you mentioned using the bye week
to kind of dig into some things that may be
causing y'all issues. Curious you know what you found out
about the team when you kind of did that.
Speaker 2 (10:24):
We had some issues and we got better at them.
Speaker 10 (10:28):
Thomas Hey's sarka Ethan Burke. He's been with you while.
Is this as efficient as you've seen him as a
pass rusher? And what accounts for that? Besides I think
he's healthier now.
Speaker 2 (10:38):
Yeah.
Speaker 1 (10:38):
No, I'm really proud of Ethan. You know, we he
he had a great offseason for us. He had a
great spring ball in summer, and I think one of
the areas that kind of can go a little unnoticed
because we always we always want to look at production.
His leadership has been fantastic. You know, that guy has
grown up a ton in our program, and uh, I'm
(11:00):
really happy for him that he's getting the production now.
The last few weeks, you know, he was he was
banged up pretty good there a little over a month ago,
and we were getting a really scaled down version of
Ethan Burke. But now that he's gotten healthy, he is
he is providing exactly what we need on that strong
side to be the player that he is. We know
what we're getting on the on the week side with
(11:21):
Colin and now to get it from the other side
with Ethan. I think they're they're a really good compliment
to one another in their style of play, and I
think they feed off of one another and and calling
speed rushes his ability to move the quarterback off the
spot has allowed Ethan to kind of do some of
that dirty work and mop up some of those things,
and so they work really well with one another that way.
Speaker 3 (11:46):
Hey, Steve, what's your un confidence level with this offensive
line the new in with the new incarnation of of
Colet left guard.
Speaker 1 (11:53):
Yeah, No, I think that it's you know, these guys
have all evolved and you know, our tackles, I think,
for the most part, have played pretty good this year.
Now can they get better? Of course, you know, we're
always trying to get those guys better. I've said about
the last you know, two to three weeks, we're getting
(12:14):
the best version of DJ Campbell that we've gotten since
we've been here. And you never know what an injury
can do for you. But with Cole being out two
different times this year, it's kind of pushed Connor Robertson
in at center and all he's done is play pretty
good for us. And so when when when Cole came
back to put him at left guard, I think it
(12:35):
gave everybody a little bit of sense of confidence, like, hey,
now now we really have some players in here that
have some experience that are playing as a unit rather
than as individuals. The offensive line is about a unit
and how do you play collectively together? And I thought
we were able to do that against Vanderbilt. I thought
they played really well. I don't know if there was
(12:55):
just some superhuman efforts where guys were just playing out
of their mind, but man, they.
Speaker 2 (13:00):
Played pretty good together.
Speaker 1 (13:02):
We picked up blitz Is much better than we had
all year, and I think that's a sign of maturity
and communication and trust that I think having those guys
in there, And I think that's probably the sense and
feeling that we have as a coaching staff, you know, and.
Speaker 2 (13:14):
Coach Flood myself.
Speaker 1 (13:16):
I think there's a real sense of trust in the
in the five that are out there right now that
they're gonna be able to execute at maybe a little
higher level than we were executing earlier in the season.
Speaker 11 (13:26):
Coach, you're saying to himself, with a lot of injuries
these past few weeks, now you've had the buy to self, scout,
how do you feel this group's gonna come out of
the buy as well as since that game in Starkville,
which young players in that group have been pressy the most.
Speaker 2 (13:38):
Well, let's start.
Speaker 1 (13:39):
With getting sixteen back, getting four back, Okay, getting seventeen
back healthy.
Speaker 2 (13:45):
I mean, those three guys are are factors for us.
Speaker 1 (13:47):
And and you know Grayson Littleton, you know, having you
know that as a true freshman playing the amount of
snap snaps he's playing, I think him having a bye
week to kind of get his body refreshed is big
for him. But all those guys that I touch on
affect what we do on the perimeter, because that's everybody
playing on the same accord, that's everybody you're working together.
(14:10):
That's the communication and communicating with confidence, and so I
do think Manny Jalen and Cad Phillips growing up, I
do think their play is affected by what we do inside.
You know, when you have to try to protect things inside,
that puts guys a little bit more on islands on
the perimeter. But I think if we can play as
one as a unit, we're pretty.
Speaker 2 (14:31):
Good back there.
Speaker 1 (14:32):
And so getting sixteen and four and seventeen, you know, healthy,
the emergence of Jonah, I think has been helpful for
us as well. So very confident in that unit and
looking forward to them play Saturday night.
Speaker 2 (14:45):
Front middle Danny, I'm Steve.
Speaker 12 (14:47):
Over the last couple of years, you you your players
have often said every week's the SEC championship game for us.
Just kind of having that attitude and that mantra help
now that these kind of three next next three games
are kind of maybe do or die.
Speaker 1 (15:00):
It's the way we've been the last three years, you know,
since we lost to Florida. The first bullet point when
I talked to the team about what it takes is
this is an SEC championship game, and that went back
now for the last month, and so this week's not
different that way. It's not like we're putting more into
it than that. It is what it is. You know,
(15:21):
if we want to play in an SEC Championship game,
gotta win Saturday night.
Speaker 2 (15:25):
It just is what it is.
Speaker 1 (15:26):
And so let's focus on what we need to do
today to make that happen.
Speaker 13 (15:30):
Roger Sark, you mentioned the names changed, but they kind
of look the same with George. Is that kind of
the ultimate compliment for a program to always look so consistently.
Speaker 1 (15:39):
Yeah, No, I think that what they do from a
recruiting standpoint, they know the body types, they know the
the athletic ability they're looking for and very specific by position,
and then and then ultimately the competitive.
Speaker 2 (15:55):
Spirit that those guys have.
Speaker 1 (15:57):
And it's a credit to Kirby, he's been the best
in our our industry for the last decade now.
Speaker 2 (16:02):
Of doing that is a lot.
Speaker 1 (16:03):
Of people have changed in or in and around the country.
Georgia has remained very consistent with their approach in recruiting,
with their approach and style of players that they look for.
UH and and to their style of play. They love
the tight ends, they recruit tight ends really well. They
love versatile linebackers, they recruit versatile linebackers really well. They
love length at corner. They recruit corners that are six
(16:26):
to one and taller. And so you can see the
consistency and their approach. And so one year that wave
of players leaves. I think that four first round picks
on defense. Here comes the next wave of guys that
all look a lot like the guys that just moved on.
And so credit to those guys, in credit to Kirby,
They've done a heck of a job.
Speaker 2 (16:45):
I think dynasty believe he says a lot.
Speaker 3 (16:51):
He really doesn't. Do you believe in that?
Speaker 14 (16:56):
Or do the Georgia still qualify as the dynasty pretty good?
Speaker 2 (16:59):
You know?
Speaker 1 (17:00):
I mean, I think the hard part is, you know,
we labeled dynasties that do you win a national championship
or not? And I don't know how easy that's going
to be to do year in and year out with
the model that we have. But their level of consistency
has been has been pretty high for the last decade.
And again credit to those guys. I don't know what
(17:21):
can constitutes a dynasty or not. These guys that played
for four straight SEC championship games and trying for five,
I think that's pretty good, you know, especially when a
lot of teams and coaches in our conference haven't played
for any.
Speaker 15 (17:37):
Yeah, coach, when facing a front seven with the speed
of Georgia's what gets emphasized in the week of practice
when it comes to reaching landmarks and outside zone or
what you need to do to be effective in a
quick screen game.
Speaker 2 (17:49):
Yeah, you know, I think that you know what they do.
Speaker 1 (17:52):
One is they have really good length across the board,
you know, from their front to their secondary to their corners,
and everything starts with them disrupting your timing, whether it's
timing at the line of scrimmage and them striking blockers,
to disrupting your route combinations, getting hands on receivers and
(18:13):
so it is it is vitally important that we do
play in sync in rhythm our run, timing at the
line of scrimmage, the timing with arch and the receivers
and and our route combinations. So I do think that
is an important factor in this game. That you know,
one of their main goals is disrupt your timing. You
got to try to keep your timing or or make
(18:34):
your your timing one of the weapons that you have
available to you, and so you could You've got to
try to create some of that timing, whether it's with
some of your formations, some of your motions, some of
your targets in the run game. You know that that
that can serve as a benefit for you because that
is a strength of theirs, for sure.
Speaker 14 (18:53):
Coach, like everybody in this room, I'm sure you watch
a lot of football Friday night and Saturday. What stood
out to you was that the trickery from USA? Was
it the catching Indiana? Was it the domination of tech?
What did you see?
Speaker 2 (19:03):
They went wow?
Speaker 14 (19:04):
On Saturday?
Speaker 2 (19:05):
You know, I think a couple of things stood out.
Speaker 1 (19:10):
One was, Man, there was a couple of great drives
at the end of these games, you know, and that's
what championship teams do. Teams that are trying to compete
for a championship, they find a way to win. And
I thought watching Indiana watching Oregon, those those are two
great drives on the.
Speaker 2 (19:25):
Road to to win those games.
Speaker 1 (19:28):
I think, you know, I saw I saw some trickery
across the board. I think people are a little more
comfortable people at this point, they've been tracked practicing trick plays.
Speaker 2 (19:36):
We better use them. Seasons coming to a close here
pretty soon, we better start calling some of this stuff.
Speaker 1 (19:43):
You know, Uh, I didn't get a chance to watch
everybody play all the time, but I think you can
start to see the you know, the the cream is
kind of rising to the top right now. You're starting
to see the teams that are getting better throughout the
season and starting to play that way. All in all,
college football is in a great space. That's what I
That's what I took out.
Speaker 2 (20:03):
Of this weekend.
Speaker 1 (20:04):
You know, it's a getting talked about a lot. You
guys are writing about it a lot. There's a lot
of really good teams that are that are fighting for spots,
and whether it's in their own conference or in the CFP,
I think it's it's very competitive. You know, you look
at our conference, you look at other conferences, and it's
not locked in who's playing for what yet, and so
(20:25):
it's great football. It's great entertainment, you know, and it's
it's high level football going on right now.
Speaker 2 (20:29):
So it was fun for me this weekend.
Speaker 3 (20:34):
Hey, Steve, In these games where you know your opponent
can more or less match up with your guys athletically,
what what's the key to game planning well under those circumstances.
Speaker 1 (20:44):
Try to put your players in the best position to
be successful. You know, I think that we we can
over lose sight of that.
Speaker 2 (20:50):
You know, sometimes you can.
Speaker 1 (20:52):
You can put in plays or defenses or or special
teams plays on a whiteboard that look good, But the
matchups matter, and so you're always trying to find favorable matchups.
You're always trying to put your players in position to
have success. And that's no different than any other game.
But again, you got to look at the matchups because
(21:13):
you've got to try to create favorable matchups.
Speaker 2 (21:15):
You got to try to create favorable angles.
Speaker 1 (21:17):
For yourselves, for yourself to create positive plays.
Speaker 2 (21:22):
It's not just about how does it look on a whiteboard.
Speaker 1 (21:24):
It's it's you know, really you know the circle on defense,
who is that guy, what number is he and what
is he good at compared to the circle that you
have on offense or defense, whatever it is. Of The
matchups definitely matter in games like this.
Speaker 6 (21:38):
Kirby said, he texted you on the way to the
game on Saturday morning. Is that normal number one? But
number two? How is your relationship with him maybe changed
in the last year and a half because you're in
the same conference now, or how has it grown?
Speaker 1 (21:51):
Yeah, he did text me Saturday morning. We're in a
couple of different group chats together, and Kirby and I
do text periodically. But he was on that ride from
Tupelo down to Starkville, which I had just done obviously
a couple of years ago.
Speaker 2 (22:04):
And that's one unique thing about the SEC.
Speaker 1 (22:06):
It's like, man, you always want to try to stay
close to stadiums, but it's hard to do that in
our in our conference, the way some of these towns
are set up. And so he checked in with what
I was doing. I said, well, I just got to
work out about how breakfast and watch you play Bud.
Speaker 2 (22:19):
So good luck, you know, see how it goes.
Speaker 1 (22:23):
But you know, again, I think honestly our relationship has
probably gotten closer since we've been in the league. We
have more things to talk about, you know. I think
one thing about him being the head coach at Georgia
and myself being the head coach at Texas, you know,
I think that that we have an opportunity to be
influential on trying to do what's best for our game,
(22:43):
not only in our conference, but in the state of
college football. And I think us being aligned on as
many issues as we can be aligned on, I think
is good for the sport, and so we try to
do that, and we're not going to agree on everything. Obviously,
he's a defensive head coach, so he's trying to get
all the rules in favor of the defense. I'm trying
to get him in favor of the offense. But in
the end, I have a ton of respect for Kirby
(23:04):
uh and the job that he does and and the
way that his teams play the game, and so a
ton of respect for him. I always love competing against him.
It's a great challenge and this week's no different time for.
Speaker 11 (23:17):
I know last year's team looked much different than this year's,
but as the result of the SEC championship from.
Speaker 3 (23:22):
Last season, a drive to you or your guys, is
there any sense of revenge?
Speaker 1 (23:26):
No, I just want to win Saturday night at seven
thirty and try to get to five and one in
conference play.
Speaker 2 (23:31):
That's really the extent of it.
Speaker 14 (23:33):
That's one of the left.
Speaker 13 (23:34):
So I keep been to a lot of historic college stadiums.
The last few years. Here's another one. You said you
haven't coached here. Can you at all appreciate that? Or
is it all about those sixty men?
Speaker 1 (23:44):
No, I definitely will appreciate it, and I hope our
players do too. You know, this is one of the
beauties of going into this conference, is the opportunity to
play in some of these some of these stadiums around
around the Southeastern Conference. And clearly they they do a
great job with their with their in game kind of
just energy from the fans to the players and the
(24:04):
whole thing.
Speaker 2 (24:05):
And at night, we all know what that is.
Speaker 1 (24:07):
And so I think inevitably for us is to hunker down,
take it in, and then we gotta we gotta fuel
one another. You know, we gotta lock arms, we gotta
go fight, We gotta go battle collectively together, we gotta.
Speaker 2 (24:19):
Stay enamor with us.
Speaker 1 (24:21):
But I'd be remiss if I didn't take it in,
if our players didn't take it in, because I think
that that's when teams can get overwhelmed. You got you
gotta embrace the moment, You got to embrace the the
environment that you're in, and then you gotta go fight
and you gotta go compete y'all, thank you.
Speaker 15 (24:37):
That is Long Warren's head coach, Steve Sarkegen
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