'Growing Pains': Sarkisian Details Patient Path Toward Longhorns' Development
The Texas Longhorns have admitted that they don't intend to dwell on last year's 5-7 record.
It's hard to blame them. In almost every way, last season was a major letdown for fans and, especially, for first-year coach Steve Sarkisian.
But simultaneously, learning from these mistakes is all a part of the growing process. Experiencing the lows goes hand-in-hand with reaching the highs.
There are the major lows, like failing to qualify for a bowl game. Then there are the manageable ones, like quarterback Quinn Ewers throwing a pick in practice.
Sarkisian knows the reality and is taking the growing process one step at a time. Rushing it could hurt all of what he's built this offseason.
“I’m a realist,” Sarkisian said. “We’re gonna have some growing pains, and that’s OK. I still think we’re a pretty good football team, and I think we’ve got some really key veterans at key spots who can help alleviate some of that.”
Sarkisian named Ewers the starting quarterback Friday. His insertion in the highly-coveted role now puts the young signal-caller at the forefront of this transition. As the primary face of one of the most talked-about teams in the country, Ewers' mistakes this season could be pegged as all his doing.
But Sarkisian knows that mistakes often permeate throughout the whole team. If one person isn't doing their job correctly, it could make the whole structure crumble. And it's the individual growth in these areas that will help jumpstart the team-wide evolution.
“We had a couple of interceptions Saturday, one of which was really a protection breakdown that forced an errant throw and another one was just not a great matchup on third down, and the defense made a good play on the ball,” Sarkisian said." So, that stuff we’ve got to work through as an offense moreso than just the quarterback.”
Like a good coach would, Sarkisian is staying patient with the time it takes for this development to take shape. He knows change won't happen overnight despite all the different scenarios he throws at his guys.
“We try to do that in practice and scrimmages,” Sarkisian said. “We’ll spot the ball on our own one-yard-line. How are you gonna play in your own end zone? I don’t expect them to get it exactly right the first time. But as many of those situations as I can put him (Ewers) in and our team, hopefully, the better we respond in a game when they present themselves.”
The Longhorns will have their first chance to show how far they've come when the Louisiana-Monroe Warhawks march into Austin on Saturday, Sept. 3. The going only gets rougher, as the Longhorns host the top-ranked Alabama Crimson Tide the following weekend, a game that will provide Texas with its first true test of the season and the Sarkisian era.
You can follow Zach Dimmitt on Twitter at @ZachDimmitt7
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