Texas Longhorns Hire Former SEC Head Coach to Major Role

Texas Longhorns add long-time SEC coach Mark Stoops to serve as an assistant to Steve Sarkisian

Kentucky’s Mark Stoops comes out on to the field before the game against Louisville in the Governor’s Cup. November 29, 2025 | Scott Utterback/Courier Journal / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

The Texas Longhorns are done with complacency and have now taken a look at nearly every role from the players on the team, all the way up to the coaching staff.

In an attempt to break through and win their first national championship in over 20 years, head coach Steve Sarkisian is building a coaching staff loaded with experience and talent. The newest addition includes the hiring of former Kentucky Wildcats head coach Mark Stoops, according to 247sports.

Stoops, who spent 13 seasons with the Wildcats, was fired on December 1 from his long-time coaching role, and now finds a new landing spot as a special assistant to Sarkisian.

Bringing in Experience

Jul 17, 2025; Atlanta, GA, USA; Kentucky Wildcats head coach Mark Stoops talks to the media during the SEC Media Days at Omni Atlanta Hotel. Mandatory Credit: Jordan Godfree-Imagn Images | Jordan Godfree-Imagn Images

Stoops knows how to win, despite what his record may show at the end of his tenure. He holds the record for the most wins all-time in Wildcats coaching history, with an overall record of 82-80. His final two seasons were shaky, ending with a 9-15 record that found him let go at the end of the season, and owed a $30 million buyout within 60 days of his termination.

As a long-time coach, he has coached multiple different positions for a while. He began his career at South Florida as a defensive backs coach in 1996 before taking on the same role at Nebraska from 1997 to 1999.

In 2000, he would take on a role as a co-defensive coordinator with the University of Houston, and after one season, he would move on to the powerhouse of the Miami Hurricanes as the defensive backs coach. He would hold that role until 2004, when he would move on to become the defensive coordinator at Arizona.

After six seasons, he would move on to become the defensive coordinator with the Florida State Seminoles. After a successful tenure there, he would be hired as the head coach for the Wildcats in 2013. He would have his best season in 2018, where they would snap a 31-game losing streak to the Florida Gators and earn their first 10-year season since 1977.

Longhorn fans should be familiar with the last name, as he is the younger brother of the longtime Oklahoma Sooners head coach Bob Stoops. Now serving under Sarkisian at the Forty Acres, he will serve as an assistant, most likely regarding game-planning.

Stoops marks another coach added to the staff that brings experience in not only winning, but winning in the SEC as well.