Texas hires North Texas' Chris Gilbert as special assistant to head coach

Chris Gilbert is returning to Austin. The North Texas assistant is set to become a special assistant to the head coach at Texas, the Longhorns announced Wednesday.

Gilbert previously worked under Steve Sarkisian for two years as the director of high school relations before taking over as North Texas’ assistant head coach and tight ends coach last season. A longtime high school coach in the DFW area, he had a 121-58 record before moving on to the college level.

Gilbert got his first high school head coaching position at South Oak Cliff in 2006 before taking the same role at Terrell High from 2009-11 and at Lancaster from 2011-21. From there, Sarkisian brought him aboard his first staff at Texas and helped the Longhorns bring in a highly rated recruiting class.

When Gilbert left for North Texas, Sarkisian turned to former Austin LBJ coach Jahmal Fenner as his replacement. It was part of his plan to maintain connections to Texas high school football, Sarkisian said prior to the 2023 season.

“It’s been huge,” Sarkisian said in July 2023. “I’m about opportunity and the fact that Chris Gilbert was able to come on board and get a full-time position job at North Texas. Then you hire Jahmal Fenner, who probably in a year or two will be in the same boat. That creates that opportunity for the next guy. We’re about promoting success for people and I think along the way our players forge great relationships with those guys.

“The high school coaches in the state of Texas know that we’re hiring good people and they want to be around the program. Come to practice, meetings, whatever that looks like. They’ve got a great conduit to make that happen.”

Gilbert’s return coincides with Texas’ move to the SEC. The Longhorns also put together another top-rated recruiting class this past cycle, coming in as the No. 6-ranked group in the country from the 2024 cycle, according to the On3 Industry Team Recruiting Ranking.

The headliner of the class is Five Star Plus+ wide receiver Colin Simmons. A Duncanville product, he came in as the No. 15 overall player in the nation and No. 5-ranked recruit in the state, according to the On3 Industry Ranking, a weighted average that utilizes all four major recruiting media companies. The recognition of Five Star Plus+ means Simmons is one of the only players ranked by all four major recruiting media companies as a five star.