Texas Longhorns Reach New Deals with Two Critical Staff Members

The Texas Longhorns are starting the new year off with a bang.

Already this offseason, Texas has fired defensive coordinator Pete Kwiatkowski, safeties coach Duane Akina, and running backs coach Chad Scott. Head Coach Steve Sarkisian was quick to find replacements as well, hiring Will Muschamp as his new defensive coordinator and Jabbar Juluke as his new running backs coach.

And now, he has made another major decision. This time to retain his two of the most prominent members of his staff.

According to reports from OrangeBloods.com's Anwar Richardson, the Longhorns have elected to sign wide receivers coach Chris Jackson to a new two-year deal. They have also re-signed general manager Brandon Harris to a new deal.

Jackson got his start in coaching with the Chicago Bears as a defensive assistant in 2019, moving to an assistant wide receivers coach role with the team in 2020. He was then hired as the receivers coach for the Jacksonville Jaguars in 2022, before joining the Longhorns under Sarkisian in 2023.

And after joining the Longhorns, he did nothing but produce results for the program.

Jackson helped produce elite results for Texas in more ways than one

Texas Longhorns wide receivers Adonai Mitchell and Xavier Worthy celebrate a touchdown by Mitchell during the Big 12 Championship | Aaron E. Martinez / USA TODAY NETWORK

Last February, Jackson was named the Rivals National Recruiter of the Year for the 2025 cycle for his contributions in bringing in a wave of offensive talent, including four five-star prospects.

The wide receivers coach and passing game coordinator assisted Texas in signing three top-20 receivers, including five-stars Kaliq Lockett and Jaime Ffrench, and Daylan McCutcheon.

Jackson is also credited with landing five-star talents Ryan Wingo, Michael Terry III, and Jermaine Bishop Jr., as well as four-star receivers Aaron Butler and Chris Stewart. He also helped Texas sign standout Parker Livingstone, and helped the Horns land a commitment from 2027 five-star receiver Easton Royal, who currently sits as the team's highest rated commitment in the cycle.

On the field, the results were plentiful as well.

In 2023, the Longhorns boasted a dynamic and explosive group of wideouts let by Xavier Worthy, Adonai Mitchell and Jordan Whittington. Worthy finished the year with a team-best 75 catches for 1,014 yards receiving and five touchdowns, while Mitchell had 845 yards and a team-high 11 scores. Whittingon also had a solid year of his own, adding 505 yards and two scores.

2024 bore similar results from Texas receivers, with Matthew Golden adding 987 yards and nine touchdowns, Isaiah Bond catching 34 passes for 540 yards and five scores, and Ryan Wingo and DeAndre Moore both racking up over 450 yards receiving. Moore also added seven touchdown catches.

The 2025 season, on the other hand, was a bit of a step back, with Wingo leading the team with 770 yards and seven touchdowns, while also leading the team with seven drops. In fact, drops were a main theme of this year's group, with the team dropping a total of 21 passes, among other struggles.

And Harris should play a major role in fixing those issues.

Harris has been critical to Texas' success

Harris has been with the Longhorns since 2019, but was named the director of recruiting by Steve Sarkisian in 2021. He held that position until 2024, when he was named the program's general manager.

As the GM, Harris is responsible for roster management, NIL negotiations, discussions with agents and more. He has also played a major role in landing standout players for Texas in the portal including Andrew Mukuba, Travis Shaw, Cole Brevard, Jack Endries, Brad Spence, Emmett Mosely and more.

Now heading into 2026 with a new deal, Harris will attempt to help the Longhorns pull off a massive coup, as they enter the beginning stages of what promises to be a massive haul in the transfer portal.

Part of that haul should come in Jackson's receivers room as well, with Texas in desperate need of a true No. 1.