Here are a few thoughts about and reactions to Texas head coach Steve Sarkisian’s Kentucky-week press conference, coming off a terrific win in the Cotton Bowl against the Sooners:
- Sark starts by saying he really liked the mental toughness Texas showed vs. OU. It was tough at first with penalties, etc. By the final six drives, they had opportunities to score points, controlled the game, and dominated the line of scrimmage. They only gave up one sack and converted third downs against the No. 1 third-down defense. On defense, the line of scrimmage was a key factor, as was minimizing the QB’s mobility and staying sticky in coverage, forcing errant throws and creating turnovers. On special teams, the punt return stood out with a lot of great blocks. ALEX’S THOUGHTS: LOL – Sark trolling all the OU fans crying about the “blocks in the back” that weren’t called on that play. Awesome.
- He said this is the time to show maturity in preparing for Kentucky in the same way. He has a lot of respect for Stoops, not only at UK but from facing them for a long time. They have a great defense, minimize explosive plays, and take shots off the run game. Playing in the SEC on the road at night is always a tough challenge. They took Ole Miss down to the wire, and Ole Miss is a Top 5 team in the country. ALEX’S THOUGHTS: Ole Miss didn’t look like a Top 5 team this weekend versus Washington State, woof.
- Chip Brown asked about Arch’s development and how the OL graded out. Arch is very even-keeled, with a ton of third-down conversions, including seven other completions on third downs outside of using his legs. He’s doing a better job keeping his eyes up. The conversion to Parker was notable; two weeks ago, he would have looked at the player rushing, but he threw arguably his best pass of the year. ALEX’S THOUGHTS: Yep, it was a hell of a catch by Livingstone, too. Regarding the OL, Sark said they did a really good job against a tough defensive front.
- Anwar asked about being midway through the regular season, what he likes vs. works in progress. Psychologically, he likes the team’s resolve. They played as a team on Saturday, with both sides of the ball contributing. He likes that multiple players on offense are making plays in critical moments: Wisner, Moore, and Parker all had two third-down conversions. A variety of people are making plays. They still need to get Mosely and Endries more involved. The continuity on the OL is improving—Nick will make mistakes, but he brings energy and attitude. On defense, the DL depth is starting to show; he mentioned Lance Jackson and Brad Spence. ALEX’S THOUGHTS: Can’t agree enough about the team’s resolve. Texas and Penn State are two very different preseason top teams in CFB on very different tracks, thanks largely to that resolve (or lack thereof in PSU’s case).
- Thomas Jones asked about Brooks: He’s in the best shape since he arrived. He was 360 pounds when he got here, now he’s just over 330. His practice habits have been helpful. Playing between two smart guys, if he trusts them to make the calls, he was a heck of a lot better this week than last. ALEX’S THOUGHTS: Man, you can say that again, although it was a worrisome first series.
- Danny Davis asked about the 2025 players and the freshman WRs: The tough part with the young wideouts is deciding who to play them over. We’re getting the best versions of Wingo, Parker, and Moore. ALEX’S THOUGHTS: This is not meant to be a slight, but I really don’t think the Ryan Wingo we’ve seen in 2025 is the best version of him. He has the upside to be a much more impactful player.
- CJ Vogel asked about the edge room and Brad Spence: We felt that could be a strength of the team coming into the season. It’s a very versatile room with different skill sets and body types. Credit to the staff for finding more ways to use them, with some new schemes on Saturday to get Spence on the field in different spots. ALEX’S THOUGHTS: Yep, they lined him up a lot at the line of scrimmage—that’s where he came from on his TFL/sack. Looked like he did back at Arkansas.
- Bohls asked about the bad talk about the team and whether it was justified: Sark said he doesn’t care because last week they wrote about how bad we were, and now they’ll write about how great we are. Nothing matters besides what we do. This is a week to show the maturity we have as a team. You can’t ride the rollercoaster of others’ opinions. ALEX’S THOUGHTS: Pretty good philosophy for life in general, to be honest.
- Ced Golden asked why Kentucky is dangerous (and accused Kirby Smart of cheating): Sark said to look at the scores in recent games. In the SEC on the road at night, you’d better buckle up. They have too many good players and have knocked off too many good teams. They cost Ole Miss a playoff bid last year. You better treat every game like it’s a championship game. Stoops has been doing this too long; we have to be prepared for a war. ALEX’S THOUGHTS: I don’t care which Stoops Texas is playing; being a student in the early 2000s at Texas is enough to make the name Stoops make me pucker up a little bit. Hopefully, the team will take the game seriously, and I suspect they will, given how Sark has been talking about it.
- Bob Ballou asked about Niblett: Tons of credit to him—they all want to be the freshman who is starting, but then they realize everyone is a really good player in college. He played QB, WR, and RB in high school, then receiver, running back, and defense, and now plays both on offense and is a terrific returner. There were moments when he wanted to leave, and I wouldn’t let him. Fought to keep him here. ALEX’S THOUGHTS: Interesting but not surprising. It was worthwhile to keep him around for the punt return against OU, if nothing else!
- Joe Cook asked about the Kentucky offense: They are running the heck out of the ball. Kendrick Law, who we recruited, is a problem on the perimeter. Finally, they have some continuity at QB. ALEX’S THOUGHTS: I guess they are done with Zach Calzada? I know he was hurt at the start of the season, but I don’t see any reason to go back to that guy if you think Cutter Boley gives you a similar ceiling because Calzada’s floor is through the basement.
- Ed Clements asked about recent HC firings: Obviously, it’s a business; we know what we sign up for. The biggest thing I think about with in-season firings is the players. Take Penn State: a year ago, they were a Final Four team in a dogfight to go to the championship. Three weeks ago, their coach was tied up with Oregon at the end of that game, and now he’s unemployed. ALEX’S THOUGHTS: I think he’s unemployed because the PSU fanbase and stakeholders felt he was a coach who couldn’t win the big games to begin with, and they couldn’t handle seeing him now unable to win games where he’s favored by three TDs. I wouldn’t have fired him—mainly because I don’t have $50 million burning a hole in my pocket—but Penn State will do what they feel they need to do.
- Cory Mose asked about Arch Manning and his scramble drill stuff with his receivers: I don’t overcoach that aspect of the game. There are parameters you put around it, but at the end of the day, you have to play. Part of that is just knowing each other, and that’s why you recruit high football IQ players. Deandre Moore’s touchdown last week wasn’t the route we called. ALEX’S THOUGHTS: If there’s one thing I guarantee Arch Manning has a lot of experience doing, it’s running around the park and just playing ball. That’s why those scramble drills are called going schoolyard. It also helps to have your roommate out there in those spots.
