Steve Sarkisian hopes his turnaround story inspires others
Steve Sarkisian wants to ensure his story inspires others who might be struggling with the same issues he once did, earlier in his career.
The Texas head coach struggled with alcohol abuse during his time at USC in 2015 and was eventually fired. His career took him to Alabama, the Atlanta Falcons and back to Tuscaloosa as an assistant before proving to himself and others that he changed.
Ahead of the College Football Playoff, Sarkisian made it known he did not want to take this opportunity for granted.
“Yeah, I mean, I’ve never done anything in my life not to try to be the best at what you do,” Sarkisian said. “And so when President Hartzell and CDC and Kevin Eltife called about this opportunity to be the coach, like I told you before, I didn’t take this job just to say I was the head coach of University of Texas.
“I took this job with the mindset we’re going to go here and win championships. I said that in the opening press conference. I said it to these guys in my very first meeting. I’ve said it to them in some nicer ways. I’ve said it to them in other ways, which Sweat can attest to.”
Sarkisian overcoming his personal demons is only part of the story. Most importantly, he healed himself off the field, but it was on the field where he would continue to be questioned.
His first brief stint at Alabama led him to the Falcons, only to be fired prior to the end of the season due to lower scoring outputs. Then, Sarkisian ended up at Alabama again and resurrected his career.
“But in the end, the journey is the journey, and our own personal journey is our personal journey, and my story is my story,” Sarkisian said. “Hopefully what comes out of this is my story can inspire others to maybe make changes in their own personal lives for growth because we don’t have to stay where we are. We can overcome things in life, and there’s so much more out there for us to go do.”
So when 2021 rolled around, Sarkisian coached guys like Mac Jones and Tua Tagovailoa to great success with the Crimson Tide and Texas swung for the fences for its new head coach.
It wasn’t the prettiest start, but it’s all paid off so far now in 2023.
“And, again, I’m grateful and thankful for the opportunity,” Sarkisian said. “Every day I’m humbled that I get to be the head coach here. So the fact that we’re able to fulfill this dream of winning a Big 12 Championship is awesome. I wish I could say it in a better way or use a better word but, it’s just frickin’ awesome. I love it for these guys and it’s great.”