Twenty years ago, Steve Sarkisian told his father that he thought the Texas Longhorns job was the best in America.
On Saturday, Sarkisian was able to reflect on that conversation with his father before he was announced as the 31 head football coach in Texas history only hours after the Longhorns parted with Tom Herman after four seasons and a 32-18 record.
The decision by shot callers like Board of Regents chairman Kevin Eltife, new president Jay Harzell, and athletics director Chris Del Conte comes after a high-profile flirtation with Urban Meyer while Herman was still employed and represents a costly gamble for a program trying to navigate the ongoing coronavirus pandemic — Herman’s buyout was $15 million and it could cost close to another $10 if Sarkisian decides to buy out Herman’s assistants, too.