Steve Sarkisian's abbreviated summer speaking tour begins Wednesday
In years past, Texas head coach Steve Sarkisian would go on a statewide speaking tour with a few fellow Longhorn head coaches as part of fundraising efforts put together by the Texas Exes. While there are no plans for a Texas Fight Tour this year, Sarkisian is scheduled to be at a select few speaking engagements before training camp begins in preparation for his program’s first season in the Southeastern Conference.
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The first stop for Sarkisian is this Wednesday at the Touchdown Club of Houston. A regular fixture on Sarkisian’s May calendar, the event will be at the Bayou City Event Center. Inside Texas will cover the event in earnest. More information on how to attend can be found here.
Whereas Sarkisian hitting Texas Exes events typically followed, that’s not the case this year. However, he will speak to some influential Longhorns in mid-May as part of a tentpole event for the Texas One Fund.
On Saturday, May 18, country superstar Ryan Bingham and dynamic duo Brooks and Dunn will be featured at “A Night for Texas,” a Texas One Fund benefit event held on Campbell-Williams Field at Darrell K Royal-Texas Memorial Stadium.
Sarkisian will be meeting with many from within the Austin business scene as well. Tito’s Vodka is the title sponsor and C3 Presents is the event management company.
This isn’t Sark’s first time shaking hands at a Texas One Fund event. Last year at Austin Country Club, Sarkisian, Rodney Terry, and Vic Schaefer along with several Texas athletes met with donors who purchased $1000 tickets in support of the Texas collective. It was part of an appeal that offered sincere gratitude toward those who had contributed but echoed the constant need for funding in the current world of college athletics.
One part of the summer tour is coaches clinics. During his first year as head coach, Sarkisian spoke virtually at the Angelo Football Clinic in San Angelo. He also was a featured speaker at the 2021 and 2023 Texas High School Coaches Association conventions.
While some assistants like Terry Joseph are scheduled to speak at some clinics, Sarkisian is not on the docket for the Lone Star Coaches Clinic or the Angelo Coaches Clinic.
At time of publication, the agenda for the THSCA convention has not yet been released.
There is a new event on the calendar this year in SEC Spring Meetings. Likely along with Rodney Terry and athletics director Chris Del Conte, Sarkisian will head to Destin, Fla. the last week of May as part of the preparation process for Texas’ first season in the SEC.
June will be consumed by recruiting, recruiting, and more recruiting. Then in mid-July, Sarkisian will travel to Dallas, Texas as part of the 2024 SEC Media Days. The SEC is invading what has typically been the Big 12’s domain and will host its media days in downtown Dallas at the Omni.
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Of course, Sarkisian is likely to end up making a handful of appearances on other platforms. He was recently on Sirius XM College Sports Radio. He has been a regular for quick-hitters with Scott Van Pelt and Matthew Barrie on SportsCenter.
But at this juncture, the known public speaking opportunities are few in number.
