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What Steve Sarkisian said on his Thursday Zoom ahead of Vanderbilt

Joe Cookby: Joe Cook5 hours agojosephcook89
Steve Sarkisian
Steve Sarkisian (Mick Walker/Lettermen Row)

Texas head coach Steve Sarkisian was available to the media on Thursday morning for his typical Zoom call. Here’s what he had to say.

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Steve Sarkisian’s opening statement: “48 hours, we’re back in DKR which is obviously very exciting for us. It’ll be 42 days Saturday from our last home game, so the idea that we get to run out of our own tunnel and play in front of our 100,000 fans and feel their support and their energy I think is exciting. I think one point we made to the team, which is very critical, the connectivity, that bond, our ability to stay connected over the last month, we need to bring that to DKR. We can’t just rely on external factors to provide that energy. We’ve got to make sure we’re providing our own energy, then feed off of the energy from the crowd and then in turn give them the energy to keep our crowd alive in this game. It’s got to be a two-way street that way. We know it’s a heck of an opponent we’re playing. It’s going to take all three phases performing at a high level. But I think we’re up for the challenge. It’s going to be a heck of a game. We’re looking forward to the opportunity.

Steve Sarkisian on playing man coverage against an offense with Diego Pavia: “It’s a challenge both ways. One thing is because of the multiplicity of personnel groupings, formations, and run schemes, you’ve got to make sure your gap integrity is sound in all the looks they can give you. There’s times when sometimes zone coverages are a little easier to adjust things out, sometimes man is a little easier to adjust out. Always on the back burner is, how are you going to account for the quarterback? How are you going to account for the quarterback in the designed quarterback runs to make sure you have enough hats to fit the designed quarterback runs? Do you have enough people to defend the triple option? Which is a factor. Then you have to make sure that if they do throw the ball that you have the ability to defend the ad lib plays when he starts to scramble and move out of the pocket. It’s not always to run. One of his bigger plays last week was on a broken play throwing it back to the running back for a critical first down. Really disciplined eye control. Really disciplined in our zone drops. Really disciplined in man of our rush lanes, our rush lane’s integrity of trying to cage that pocket. All those things are going to play a part as it points to it. I just don’t think we can be one dimensional. They’re too well coached. They’ve got too good of a scheme. We have to continue to mix our looks and try to make things difficult on them and try to create some negative plays.”

Steve Sarkisian on what they missed most without Michael Taaffe: “One of the things is there’s a quiet confidence. I don’t know if quiet is the right word. There’s a confidence that Michael Taaffe provides when he’s on the field. I don’t know that schematically we could have or would have played any better. It wasn’t like we were blowing coverages and things. They maybe got us on one, but I do think there’s a sense of confidence that he can provide to the guys around him. I do think it was a great opportunity for Jelani McDonald, Derek Williams, Xavier Filsaime to grow in their role. I thought it was great for Anthony Hill to step up even more. Sometimes certain games require more of you. That one required more of Anthony Hill just like certain games have required more of Colin (Simmons) or Ethan Burke last week. When you have moments like that, you miss those great players. It also provides great opportunities for others that we can grow from.”

Steve Sarkisian on special teams’ improved play from specialists to others: “A lot of guys are doing a nice job. There’s some frontline players that are key components to that unit. There are some unsung heroes that we don’t hear a lot about. Michael Taaffe, before he got injured, was a mainstay on special teams. Jelani McDonald, another guy on special teams. Ty’Anthony Smith, another guy on special teams you see out there. DeAndre Moore. Some of your frontline guys. Then you talk about Marshall Landwehr, Jordon Johnson-Rubell, Warren Roberson, and now Jonah Williams. You’re seeing some of those other guys that maybe aren’t frontline starters on offense or defense, but are impactful players for us on special teams. We take a lot of pride in special teams. We have since the day I arrived. Last year going the way that it went was a little out of character for us. For us to get back to playing to the standard that we want to play to on special teams I think is big for us. That’s a huge component of the game, especially in our conference in games like this. When you’re talking one score games, when that phase of the game can impact the game in a positive manner, it’s surely beneficial.”

Steve Sarkisian on Vanderbilt’s methodical tempo and the pressure it puts on the defense: “I think that’s one of the keys to their success, right? They’re one of the top third down teams in the country. I think they’re over 50%, maybe 52% on third down, which is an excellent number. That’s due in part to they generally move the ball forward. They run the ball. They get themselves in third and short situations. They convert third downs. They stay on the field. That allows them to be an efficient offensive football team. The idea is, how well can you do on first and second down to put yourselves in a winning situation on third down? When they do get to the red area, do a great job of red zone lockout and keeping them out of the end zone. On the flip side offensively, it’s probably more pressure there to remain efficient on the offensive side of the ball with how deliberate they can play. It’s a nice style of play. They do a good job of playing complimentary football. You’re ability to remain efficient offensively I think is just as important.”

Steve Sarkisian on prepping the offense without knowing the QB: “We haven’t changed anything we’ve done. Our system has been our system. I know that his coaches and his teammates have the utmost confidence and respect for Matt Caldwell. He performs really well. I know you guys have a very small sample size of what you’ve seen in game, but he gives us a ton of confidence in the way he practices everyday, the way that he works. Naturally, he’s been thrown into the fire here a couple different times in SEC play and has performed very well. The gameplan is the gameplan. I think all of his teammates have a ton of confidence in him if it’s his time to go.”

Steve Sarkisian on Ty’Anthony Smith: “I think it’s a byproduct of his commitment to (special teams). He’s gone for it. He was a freshman, and he figured out early on that was going to be his way to get on the field. He worked at it. He became one of (Jeff) Banks’ go-to guys on special teams. That actually earned him more playing time on defense as a freshmen. He’s continually grown. I think one thing about Ty’Anthony is how much he’s matured from the day he arrived to where he is today. He’s a leader on our team. Football is important to him. He’s a great teammate. At the end of that game last week, he was in there playing the last four drives on defense. He’s impactful. He’s got a knack for the football. He plays with fanatical effort. He’s physical. He’s fast. Those are all great attributes, obviously, on special teams as well.”

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Steve Sarkisian on Clark Lea: “Ton of respect of Clark. We got to SEC meetings and spend some time, but ton of respect for the job he’s done. That’s not easy when you’re rebuilding a program. I think the belief he had in his process to get them there, he’s held true to. It’s not always about the vision that you have. You have to put things into action. Clark clearly has done that. He’s brought in some nice pieces to the puzzle from a recruiting standpoint. Diego Pavia being one of those and the impact he’s had in attracting other players and (creating) a sense of belief in that locker room. A ton of credit to Clark.”

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