What Mark Stoops Brings to Texas as Steve Sarkisian's New Special Assistant

For all the attention that naturally comes with hiring a new coordinator, there is a hire for the Texas Longhorns that is seemingly going under the radar.

Which makes sense, given that former Kentucky head coach Mark Stoops isn’t a position coach or a coordinator, but his presence on the Forty Acres may be more impactful than some realize.

The 59-year-old who joined the staff back in the spring as the special assistant to the head coach has already been pictured in burnt orange and white, yet his role may be found only on the margins.

What Once Was the Longest-Tenured Head Coach

Kentucky head coach Mark Stoops smiles while walking onto the field before the Wildcats? Blue-White scrimmage on April 13 at Kroger Field in Lexington. | USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect

Before being fired in Lexington following the program’s second straight losing season, Stoops was the most-tenured coach in the conference. While the likes of Nick Saban, Les Miles, and even Mark Richt had come and gone during his time, Stoops remained in Lexington.

And it wasn’t due to a lack of interest elsewhere. Texas A&M nearly hired Stoops away from Kentucky after firing Jimbo Fisher, a very public move. The Aggies may very well have hired Stoops if it wasn’t for a reported intense backlash from fans and boosters alike.

Not many sitting head coaches in the conference can claim to know as much about the SEC as Stoops. Which, for a Texas program entering its third football season since joining, can prove to be a valuable asset.

Sure, he’s never outright won the conference, but for 12 years he managed to do more with less at Kentucky. Until Stoops, the most successful football coach in Lexington was Bear Bryant, who left Kentucky as its winningest coach.

Fitting in with the Vision

The offseason theme for the Longhorns has been clear since last season's disappointments. Physicality and toughness have been at the center of everything in Austin.

After finishing 90th in rushing offense, Texas is looking to reassert itself on the ground, something Stoops made the epicenter of his Kentucky offenses.

Despite not boasting the talent on the offensive line as fellow SEC programs, Stoops finished inside the conference’s top-five for rushing offenses in each of the 2020 and 2021 seasons. That aforementioned 2021 season was one of the program’s best, as he guided the Wildcats to a 10-3 finish.

Stoops never fielded the most talented teams, yet, as the Longhorns saw last season, they outperformed expectations thanks to their commitment to physicality along the lines of scrimmage.

During that overtime game this past season, the Wildcats rushed for 137 yards against a Texas defense that finished among the top 15 nationally in rushing defense. Meanwhile, Kentucky held Texas to just 47 yards rushing.

The core identity that Stoops instilled in Lexington is one that the Longhorns are now looking to build in Austin.

Sign up to our free newsletter and follow us on Facebook, X and Instagram for the latest news.

Add us as a preferred source on Google