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    Jeff Howe
    TAMPA, Fla. — Trevor Goosby didn’t mince words at SEC Media Days when asked to describe what went wrong when Texas tried to run the football in 2025.
    “Sometimes, first and foremost, we weren't physical enough,” Goosby said. “Obviously, we weren't moving bodies the way that we should have. And then, sometimes, I felt like we were just kind of playing as five individuals rather than five as one.
    “It was just kind of five offensive linemen out there rather than one offensive line unit,” he added. “That's kind of how I felt about last year.”
    There were indeed issues along the offensive line, which played a significant role in the Longhorns managing just 137.8 rushing yards per game (90th in FBS and the program’s lowest output since 2017) and averaging 4.19 yards per rushing attempt (No. 84 nationally and the worst on the Forty Acres since 2018). However, multiple parties must be held responsible for the worst season on the ground for an FBS offense led by Steve Sarkisian since his first season as Washington’s coach in 2009.
    Sarkisian overhauled the running back room’s personnel with Raleek Brown and Hollywood Smothers from the transfer portal and Derrek Cooper from the high school ranks. A leadership change has also made a difference for a position group that lacked consistency and explosiveness last season, with Jabbar Juluke’s arrival injecting the offense with some much-needed juice.
    “Coach Juluke is always bringing that energy with the running backs,” Goosby said. “I can really feel it from the running back group. They're always bringing that energy.”
    Goosby likes what Sarkisian and the front office did to elevate the tight end room with the additions of Michigan State transfer Michael Masunas and former Michigan co-offensive coordinator Steve Casula.
    “Really, just kind of a development for not only the pass game, but also the run game, and just getting more physical,” Goosby said. “We're getting a lot more out of those guys, for sure.  Coach (Jeff) Banks and Coach Casula have done a great job of really bringing those guys along.”
    Sarkisian and Kyle Flood utilizing the transfer portal to beef up the offensive line has helped bring the unit together, Goosby said Thursday. Melvin Siani has proven himself to be “a really athletic tackle” who “is really quick on his feet,” according to Goosby, who described June arrival Laurence Seymore as “a really tenacious, athletic run blocker (and) pass blocker.”
    Will the changes made after taking stock of a largely forgettable season on the ground lead to Texas having an attack capable of taking pressure off Arch Manning and that can be counted on to execute in critical situations? To ensure everyone in the offensive line room understands how unacceptable last season was and what they need to do as a group to help put a better product on the field, Goosby has made it a point to lead the charge.
    At the end of the day, Goosby said, turning things around will require his fellow linemen to get their minds wrapped around winning the line of scrimmage battle by moving another man against his will.
    “I think it's more of a mental thing; mentality thing rather than a technique thing,” Goosby said. Obviously, we're going to do our technique drills and do our individual and stuff, but for me personally, sometimes I'll bring the guys in and we'll watch plays where it didn't work because of us. Plays where we needed to be more physical and just pushing that narrative to the guys.
    “That's kind of the biggest thing that we've done this offseason.”
    Jeff Howe
    TAMPA, Fla. — Arch Manning’s goal coming out of the 2025 season and entering his second campaign as QB1 on the Forty Acres was simple.
    “Stay present,” Manning said while making the rounds at SEC Media Days in Tampa on Thursday. “Take it one day at a time.”
    For Manning, who was under a white-hot spotlight before he ever took a snap in a Texas uniform, that’s easier said than done. Still, Manning has grown while learning how to deal with life in a fishbowl ahead of what figures to be his last season with the Longhorns.
    He believes it’s the biggest difference between the player he is now and who Manning was before leading No. 1-ranked Texas into last season’s opening game on the road against reigning national champion Ohio State.
    “I think I've become more present,” Manning said. “I've obviously matured. I think going through those rough times, I learned a lot about myself and I've become a better man because of it and, hopefully, a better player.”
    Manning joked that he isn’t aiming for a repeat performance against the Buckeyes, when he threw for 170 yards, one touchdown and an interception on a 17-for-30 afternoon throwing the football in a 14-7 loss. The loss was part of a turbulent first half of the season for Manning, whose play inspired an article published by "The Athletic" openly pondering if Manning was college football’s first flop.
    After a 16-13 overtime win over Kentucky in which the offense posted season-low totals for total yards (179), yards per play (3.3) and first downs (eight), Manning was, statistically, one of the least productive quarterbacks in the SEC. His 207 passing yards per game entering the team’s next game against Mississippi State ranked 71st nationally and 13th in the SEC among 16 qualifying quarterbacks. He also ranked 91st in FBS and last in the conference in completion percentage (60.3), while his 140.4 pass efficiency rating ranked 63rd nationally and 11th in the SEC.
    Things changed, however, after Manning led a furious second-half rally in a 45-38 overtime win over Mississippi State the week following the woeful performance against the Wildcats.
    In November, which included wins over Vanderbilt, Arkansas and Texas A&M (along with a loss to Georgia), Diego Pavia and Trinidad Chambliss were the only SEC quarterbacks with more passing yards per game than Manning's 286.8. Over the last four games of the regular season, Manning completed 62.2 percent of his passes and tied Chambliss for the third-most passing touchdowns among SEC quarterbacks (nine) while throwing only one interception.
    Coming off a turnover-free performance with 376 total yards and four touchdowns in a Citrus Bowl win over Michigan and fully recovered from postseason foot surgery, Manning isn’t changing his live-in-the-now mindset in the face of sky-high expectations.
    “I'm not really worried about the outside world,” Manning said. “That's what I'll continue to try to do.”
    Jeff Howe
    TAMPA, Fla. — If book excerpts and off-the-cuff remarks have damaged the relationship between Steve Sarkisian and Ole Miss coach Pete Golding, neither coach is admitting it publicly.
    Golding spoke of Sarkisian only with reverence while making the rounds at SEC Media Days in Tampa on Wednesday.
    “I've always been a super-big fan of Steve Sarkisian. I was able to get really close to him in his time at Tuscaloosa and always had really, really admired him, even prior to that,” said Golding, who worked alongside Sarkisian on Nick Saban’s Alabama staff in 2019 and 2020. “But to see him and how he works on a daily basis and his love of the game and his rapport with his players when he was the coordinator there, the ability to bring people around him with him from a leadership standpoint. I always thought he was one of the best game-day play-callers out there, and packaging plays and seeing things and the way he window dresses things to be able to get certain guys — as they're moving — the ball, which I think is very, very unique.”
    Golding also made note of what Sarkisian and the Texas staff have done on the recruiting trail, quipping during his main press conference that he’s not fond of the Longhorns’ effort to recruit deep into the SEC footprint, specifically the state of Mississippi.
    “I tell Sark all the time, ‘Dude, you’ve got plenty of guys in Texas. Get out of our state,’” said Golding, who suffered an in-state recruiting loss to Texas when Brookhaven (Miss.) EDGE Derwin Fields committed to the Longhorns over other suitors, including Ole Miss, in April. “They’re everywhere.” 
    All joking aside, both parties have taken their share of shots in the last year, some more hurtful than others
    The first indication of possible friction between Sarkisian and Golding came in August 2025, courtesy of an excerpt from Seth Wickersham’s book “American Kings: A Biography of the Quarterback.” According to the excerpt, Golding reportedly tried to use Sarkisian’s battle with alcoholism to sway the hotly contested race for Arch Manning in Alabama’s favor (Manning committed to Texas on June 23, 2022).
    After the dust settled, Sarkisian took what could be considered a swipe at Golding’s program while voicing his issues with transfer portal recruiting in a wide-ranging interview with Matt Hayes of USA Today.
    “All you have to do is take basket weaving, and you can get an Ole Miss degree,” Sarkisian said. He admitted during his appearance at the Touchdown Club of Houston’s annual Texas luncheon in May that he shouldn’t have used that specific example while trying to frame big-picture issues in college football.
    Since then, Sarkisian has been complimentary of Golding, touting their friendship. For his part, Golding is returning the favor, praising Sarkisian and the Longhorns on Wednesday for the challenge awaiting the Rebels when they visit Royal-Texas Memorial Stadium on Oct. 24.
    “I think it's going to be a really, really tough game. They're a very talented football team,” said Golding, who will continue to call the defense for Ole Miss, making the game a true head-to-head battle with Sarkisian. “(Sarkisian has) put together a really good staff. I've worked with a lot of those guys; a lot of respect for them. Really good relationship, obviously, with Arch. Playing down there is going to be tough.
    “We've definitely done our homework; you have to with Sark,” he added. “You're going to get certain plays, but you've just got to contest those, man, and spot the ball and play the next one. Super excited about the opportunity.”
    Jeff Howe
    TAMPA, Fla. — Jon Sumrall enters his first season at Florida knowing the caliber of quarterback his defensive staff will have to deal with when the Gators travel to Austin to face Texas and Arch Manning on Oct. 17.
    Sumrall got to know Archie Manning and the Manning family during his two seasons as Tulane’s coach. Sumrall recalled during his press conference at SEC media days on Wednesday that Archie Manning reached out to him to see if he’d allow Arch Manning to work out at Tulane’s football facilities while the Longhorn quarterback was spending time at home in New Orleans.
    “Archie would shoot me a text or a phone call and see if it's OK in May, during a little downtime, if Arch comes over and throws,” Sumrall said. “I'm like, ‘Yeah. And ask if he wants to transfer.’ I might go out there and watch him throw and (Arch’s father) Cooper or whoever might be out there. I’m like, ‘Yeah, I’d like to coach that guy.’”
    In the face of constant pressure the Florida defense applied in a 29-21 loss the Gators handed Texas in Gainesville last season, Manning went 16-for-29 for 263 yards and two touchdowns (two interceptions and 37 net rushing yards on a season-high 15 official carries). Although the third bout between the Longhorns and Florida in as many seasons will be Sumrall’s first time preparing a plan to defend Manning, he knows the caliber of player the Gators will see under center.
    “He's a good player,” Sumrall said. “I really have a lot of respect for the Manning family as a whole. The apple doesn't fall far from the tree with Arch, with how he carries himself.”
    Sumrall inherits a Florida program that’s split its two SEC meetings with Texas (the Longhorns blasted the Gators in Austin in 2024, 49-17) and will battle Steve Sarkisian’s club for a third consecutive season. It’s one of the quirks of the league’s effort to equitably schedule a nine-game SEC slate for the league’s 16 programs, which resulted in scheduling anomalies, such as Florida and Tennessee not facing each other for the first time since 1989.
    Texas won't supplant the Volunteers on the list of schools the Gator faithful would consider a true rival to Florida. Nevertheless, Sumrall is looking forward to Sarkisian and the Longhorns being one of his team’s nine conference opponents during his maiden voyage as an SEC head coach.
    “It’s a big game because you're playing Texas and they're really good. Every SEC game is a big game is a big game,” Sumarall said. “It doesn't matter who we're playing; we don't change our prep for the game. It stays the same. But it is new and unique to be playing Texas a third year in a row. That's not something that's maybe historically been a part of Florida's past and Texas’ past. Who would’ve thought 10 years ago that Florida was playing Texas for the third year in a row and not playing Tennessee?
    “A lot of respect for Sark," he added. "He's a brilliant offensive mind and a play-caller. I've always admired how he does things. I think he runs a great program.”
    Jeff Howe
    HOUSTON — If Texas wins the national championship in 2026, Steve Sarkisian will become college football's first head coach in the College Football Playoff era to win the title while calling his team’s offensive plays.
    Jimbo Fisher was the last play-calling head coach to win it all, doing so at Florida State in 2013. Sarkisian, Fisher, Lincoln Riley and Ryan Day led their respective teams to the CFP semifinals in the four-team format (2014-23). Day guided Ohio State to the championship game in 2020 (the Buckeyes lost to Alabama, with Sarkisian calling the Crimson Tide’s plays en route to Nick Saban’s last national championship), making him the only play-calling head coach in the CFP era to clear the semifinal hurdle.
    Day turned play-calling over to Chip Kelly during the Buckeyes’ run to the national title in 2024. Sarkisian isn’t ready to relinquish those responsibilities. During his press conference at the Texas High School Coaches Association Convention in Houston on Sunday, Sarkisian pointed out a few advantages he believes he has as a play-calling head coach.
    “I'm coaching these guys, I'm installing plays, I'm around them, we're talking game plans, so I think from a connection standpoint, that helps,” Sarkisian said. “I think on game day, trying to manage the game and control the game of when you want to speed up, maybe when you want to slow down. When you go for it on fourth down, when you don't; the impact that can have on your team if you make it, if you don't make it. Field position with the defense and things of that nature.”
    Sarkisian’s response when breaking down the other side of the coin, however, reinforced why he parted ways with Pete Kwiatkowski after the 2025 regular season concluded, which paved the way for Will Muschamp’s return to the Forty Acres for a second tour of duty overseeing the Longhorn defense.
    “I think one of the areas where it can be difficult is trusting those guys on defense,” Sarkisian said. “If I'm trying to make adjustments on the offensive side of the ball between series, it's having trust in the defensive coaches that they've got a good grasp of what we're doing and, if a timeout is needed, why? What that situation looks like.”
    Muschamp’s “ability to really lead young men in our locker room is big for me,” Sarkisian said. With Muschamp hired to be the head coach of the defense, as Sarkisian put it when he publicly discussed the move before the Citrus Bowl against Michigan, whether or not the offense returns to being the explosive, productive unit it was throughout Sarkisian’s first four seasons on the job is squarely on his shoulders.
    That’s exactly how Sarkisian wants it to be.
    “This is the only way I know it,” Sarkisian said. “You know I've never done it any other way. I grew up in the profession with a guy that did it that way as well in Pete Carroll. He called the defense and, when I went to the Oakland Raiders early in my career, Norv Turner was the head coach — he called the plays.
    “Obviously, there's a lot of ways to do it and there's a lot of successful ways to do it, but this is just the way that I learned how to do it.”
    ***
    One of the reasons Sarkisian specifically targeted Muschamp is the reputation his defenses have for causing havoc. Hunting havoc plays (tackles for loss, forced fumbles, pass breakups and interceptions) was a talking point throughout spring practice because Muschamp emphasizes them.
    While breaking down defensive back play to a standing-room-only crowd in a ballroom at the George R. Brown Convention Center on Sunday (along with the high school coaches who were present for Muschamp’s lecture, coaches from Texas State, SMU, Texas A&M and other FBS programs were spotted in the room), Muschamp touched on the importance of havoc. It starts with every drill in practice ending with a Longhorn defensive back getting his hands on the ball.
    “There’s no drill where we just backpedal and let them go,” said Muschamp, whose 2009 Texas defense led the nation with 25 interceptions (the seventh-most in school history and the most in a season on the Forty Acres since 1951). “It's ending with catching the football or knocking the ball down every single time because that determines if you're a good player or not. You create havoc when you get hands on the ball.”
    While the Longhorns finished fourth in the SEC in passes defended (combined interceptions and pass breakups) per game (4.62), the defense’s 2.33 passes defended per game in their three losses (two interceptions and five pass breakups) was the second-worst mark in the conference. Just two of Texas’ 12 forced fumbles came in its losses, further highlighting Sarkisian’s desire for more consistent havoc on defense.
    ***
    Has the physicality of Muschamp’s defense helped the Texas offense get ready to navigate one of the toughest schedules in the country?
    “Absolutely,” running backs coach Jabbar Juluke said when fielding a question from the audience during his presentation on Monday. Juluke demands his running backs play with a physical edge, something the Longhorns consistently lacked on offense last season.
    “I only know one way,” Juluke said. “We want it every day.”
    Juluke then joked that the “no thud equals no play” mantra Muschamp introduced in the spring was born out of the offense’s willingness to trade punches with the defense in practice.
    “They couldn’t tackle our (expletive) ass,” Juluke said. “They weren’t stopping the run like they needed to. We’re going to finish the drill.
    “We work hand-in-hand,” he added. “I think we have an amazing staff.”
    ***
    During his THSCA press conference on Monday, while rattling off games he felt exemplified Texas A&M’s lack of consistency in 2025, Mike Elko omitted his team’s 27-17 loss to Texas.
    “I think last year what we showed was, at our peak, we were good enough to play with and beat anybody in the country. That's how you win 11 games,” said Elko, who will be in Tampa on Wednesday with quarterback Marcel Reed, linebacker Daymion Sanford and safety Marcus Ratcliffe. “But we also had too many times where we didn't play at our peak. Whether that was a quarter at LSU — the second quarter — whether that was the (first) half against South Carolina or whether that was for longer stretches in the Playoff game (against Miami), our ability to play the best football that we can play consistently a little bit more often has been the entire emphasis of our offseason.”
    Elko’s second loss to the Longhorns in as many tries should be grouped with those other performances, especially since Texas overcame a 10-3 halftime deficit, dominating the Aggies in the second half.
    ***
    Looming changes to college football’s offseason structure are another sign of the sport’s rapid evolution, which might not be a bad thing. Specifically, the FBS oversight committee has proposed changing the traditional spring practice model (15 practices over 34 days), further clouding the future of spring games across the country.
    What would replace it is something closer to an NFL offseason model. The proposal is for two sessions (one of which can take place over a maximum of five weeks) totaling 21 practices. If the proposal is approved in August, FBS teams would get up to seven weeks to conduct both sessions.
    Former Wyoming coach Craig Bohl, the executive director of the American Football Coaches Association, admitted during his Monday press conference in Houston that “the world has changed." That's why one of Bohl's priorities is working with the NCAA on behalf of college football coaches to overhaul an outdated offensive structure.
    The AFCA has worked extensively with the NFL when designing an offseason schedule that’s more in line with where football is headed, Bohl said. While there are noticeable differences between how the NFL and college football operate, Bohl said the addition of six practices to the offseason calendar and shortening the timeline for preseason practice (the proposal calls for 21 on-field practices over 27 days) are sensible, long-overdue changes that are being embraced.
    “What we did feel like was important is to look at some of the positive things the NFL is doing and then, quite frankly, too, we looked at some of the things in that chaotic world that we experienced during COVID, where everybody said we couldn't play football,” Bohl said. “What we found was there were things that we were able to adapt that really were meaningful, and one of the things that we found was more access to our players to do some work during the course of the summer. Players enjoyed it. Coaches enjoyed it. It didn't have to be a hit fest where you're in full contact and you're going to go out and do a full scrimmage. You could do some work in (spider pads) and get some good work done. This is where we integrated six extra workouts. It has been really warmly received by players and coaches.”
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