Friday Night Focus: The last time Sarkisian, Aranda got together
Saturday’s contest between Baylor and Texas won’t be the first time Baylor head coach Dave Aranda and his Texas counterpart Steve Sarkisian call plays against each other.
In 2019, No. 1 LSU traveled to Tuscaloosa, Ala. to take on the No. 2 Crimson Tide. Sarkisian was in his first year as Alabama’s offensive coordinator, directing an offense with the likes of Tua Tagovailoa, Landon Dickerson, Alex Leatherwood, Najee Harris, Jedrick Wills, DeVonta Smith, Henry Ruggs, Jerry Jeudy, and Jaylen Waddle.
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Aranda was in his fourth season as LSU’s defensive coordinator, and his defense had stars like Kristian Fulton, Grant Delpit, Patrick Queen, K’Lavon Chaisson, Jacob Phillips, Derek Stingley Jr., Rashard Lawrence, Tyler Shelvin, JaCoby Stevens, and Kary Vincent Jr.
“Probably the first thing about that game was just how many great players were on both teams,” Sarkisian said Thursday. “It was a high level football game of talent and competitors battling.”
It took about a half for the Crimson Tide offense to get going. Aranda’s defense limited the Bama offense to one first-half touchdown via Smith, with Waddle adding a 77-yard punt return late in the first quarter for the other Alabama score.
Once Sarkisian’s side got going, it was tough to stop.
The Crimson Tide offense put up 345 yards in the second half, including 108 rushing yards, 44 receiving yards, and a pair of touchdowns from Harris. Tagovailoa added three touchdown passes, including an 85-yarder to Smith to make it a 46-41 ballgame late.
But the clock ran out on Sarkisian, Nick Saban, and the rest of the Crimson Tide when Joseph Bulovas’ onside kick attempt was recovered by Justin Jefferson, clinching LSU’s first win over Alabama since the 9-6 game in 2011.
While his own offense and Aranda’s defense won’t be as start-studded on Saturday as the teams who took the field in Bryant-Denny Stadium two years ago (though Texas’ Ray Thornton and Baylor’s Siaki Ika were both on that Tiger team), Sarkisian still carries a lot of respect for Aranda both from that game, and from his recent study of Aranda’s No. 16 Bears.
“He always has a nice gameplan coming into games,” Sarkisian said. “They’re very sound, but then he makes the necessary adjustments in game.
“You always like the challenge. Players get challenged every week from a physical standpoint obviously, and as coaches we get challenged every week. When you get to go up against guys you have a lot of respect for, that’s the beauty of our profession. Dave and coach (Ron) Roberts, their DC, they do a nice job and they’ve been doing a nice job for a long time.”
