Steve Sarkisian Pumps the Brakes on Cam Coleman's Slow Start

The Texas Longhorns offense is under a microscope as the unit continues to struggle through its inconsistencies, especially after an ugly loss to the Oklahoma Sooners.

The Longhorns' offensive struggles are not pinpointed to a single reason, as most of the unit plays a role in those issues. From the play calling of Steve Sarkisian, the play of Arch Manning, and everything in between.

Texas continues to work through its offensive issues as a whole; standing out among those problems is the involvement of wide receiver Cam Coleman, who has not had the start of the season most Texas fans would've expected from the big-time offseason acquisition.

If Texas' Track Record Tracks Cam Coleman is Set for an Explosion

Texas Longhorns wide receiver Cam Coleman (8) makes a catch to score a touchdown against Oklahoma Sooners defensive back Trystan Haynes (14) during the first half at Cotton Bowl. | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

While the addition of Coleman was expected to yield massive returns as the wide receiver was brought to Austin to be the Longhorns No. 1 wide receiver, the start for Coleman on the Forty Acres has been a slow one.

However, Sarkisian noted in his Thursday media availability that it's not strange for new wide receivers to take some time to adjust to his offensive scheme.

"It's not so uncommon at this stage for a transfer coming in to not have 40 catches in our offense," Sarkisian said. "I think we saw that with AD Mitchell. I think we saw that with Matthew Golden in their transformation of their first year in the system and then how it really started to take off in the second half of the season."

Sarkisian is right in that analysis, as in recent years, the Longhorns' big-time wide receiver transfer portal additions, like Coleman, have had slow starts to their season.

In 2023, Adonai Mitchell ended that year as the Longhorns' second-leading wideout, behind Xavier Worthy. Mitchell finished his lone season at Texas with 55 catches for 845 yards and 11 touchdowns; however, his first five games started with 22 receptions for 321 yards and four touchdowns.

And in 2024, Matthew Golden ended the season as Texas' leading wide receiver, totaling 58 receptions for 987 yards and nine touchdowns. However, Golden's start in Austin wasn't high-flying, as through five games the wide receiver recorded 18 catches, 223 receiving yards, and three touchdowns.

In five games, Coleman has shown his ability as a downfield threat and a contested-catch specialist in the red zone. So far, Coleman has similar numbers to Mitchell and Golden through five games, with the wide receiver recording 17 receptions for 318 yards and five touchdowns.

While the Longhorns offense struggled as a whole against Oklahoma, Coleman began to show his understanding of the Texas scheme with his best game of the season. The wide receiver accounted for five receptions, his first 100-yard receiving game with 110 yards and a touchdown.

Coleman's skillset as a serious deep threat has also started to show up as Manning connected with the wide receiver on two deep completions against the Sooners.

Texas has a lot it still needs to sort out on the offensive side of the ball; however, if trends remain the same with Sarkisian's offense, Coleman is set to take another leap forward in the middle and through the back half of the season.

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