This Is Why Steve Sarkisian Knows the Future Is Bright For Dia Bell

Quarterback Dia Bell out of American Heritage High School in Fort Lauderdale, FL has essentially been with the Texas Longhorns since his commitment to the team back in June of 2024, and after his signing during National Signing Day on Wednesday, he's officially part of the Burnt Orange.

Bell is a five-star recruit and the best player from Florida in the 2026 class, according to 247Sports, and despite suffering a leg injury that cut his junior year short, Bell hasn't skipped a beat in his play since returning.

Many already see a bright future for the young signal caller, including Texas head coach Steve Sarkisian.

"He's Fortunate To Be In the Room"

Sarkisian, a former quarterback himself, knows how much development goes into such a demanding position, and he spoke on the growing pains of the position, especially with what he saw with Arch Manning during the 2025 season.

American Heritage Patriots quarterback Dia Bell (3) scrambles in the backfield. — American Heritage Patriots quarterback Dia Bell (3) scrambles in the backfield during the first quarter of a game against the Naples Golden Eagles at Staver Field in Naples on Friday, Sept. 13, 2024. | Jonah Hinebaugh/Naples Daily News/USA Today Network-Florida / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

"The quarterback position, I would say the closer to the ball you are, the more development you need, the tougher it is to play earlier in your career," Sarkisian said. "The quarterback is a developmental position. As many stars as you have behind your name, it's a developmental position. There are so many nuances that come with that position, and even with Arch, here's a guy who had been in our program for two years and had started a couple of games for us last year."

"We saw some of the growing pains for him this year and how much he evolved and how much better he played for us in the second half of the season, so that position is a developmental position for us."

Sarkisian would go on to bring up Texas' success at developing quarterbacks, what stood out to him about Bell, and the quality that currently sits in the Longhorns' quarterback room.

"We've had some good success at developing quarterbacks," Sarkisian said. "We've been fortunate that some guys only started one year, got drafted really high, first-round picks, and gone on to have careers in the NFL. So, at the end of the day, Dia's future is very bright. He's going to work his tail off and he's going to try to beat the next guy out, but at the same time support those guys and I think that's why he was so attractive to us in this recruiting process, is because of his mental makeup, of what he believes in, what he stands for, to go along with the physical attributes that he has."

"I do think he's fortunate to be in that (quarterback) room. There's a lot of quality players in that room, great people in that room."

Bell, the son of former NBA player Raja Bell, was also offered by Alabama, Georgia, and Texas A&M throughout his recruiting process, all since he announced his commitment to the Horns a year and a half ago, but Bell made it clear with his signing Wednesday morning that he knows exactly where he is supposed to be.