Texas eliminated from bowl contention in Steve Sarkisian’s first season
Texas football is likely to see miss a bowl game for the first time since missing in the 2015-2016 seasons.
The first year of the Steve Sarkisian era at Texas did not go as planned.
The Longhorns are looking at a losing record and missing a bowl game for the first time since the 2016 season. Texas actually didn’t qualify for a bowl game in 2015 too. Those Charlie Strong teams went 5-7 in back-to-back years. That’s the best-case scenario facing Sarkisian in his first year. This is the fifth seven-loss season for Texas football since 2010. Texas had four such seasons from 1930-2009.
After losing to West Virginia in Week 12 to fall to 4-7, Texas has now lost six straight games.
Texas will not play in a bowl game but Sarkisian has already received a voice of support from the Texas higher-ups and power brokers.
The Longhorns won the Alamo Bowl each of the last two seasons, won the Sugar Bowl over Georgia when Sam Ehlinger proclaimed Texas was back and won the Texas Bowl in 2017.
Four straight bowl wins weren’t enough to keep Tom Herman in Austin for a fifth season.
Steve Sarkisian misses bowl game in his first season at Texas
The first season is an inauspicious start for Sarkisian who came to Austin for a third stint as a head coach after stops at USC and Washington. He had great success as an offensive coordinator for Nick Saban at Alabama but his head coaching record isn’t as sterling.
If Sarkisian can’t get Texas to a bowl game when that should be the absolute lowest benchmark, it’s a disappointing sign for him and his future.
There is an outside chance Texas will be selected for a bowl game with a 5-7 record. Once all the 6-6 teams are picked to fill out the bowl slots, teams with 5-7 records can be picked to fill out the slots. Those spots go to teams based on APR rates, so it’s nothing to be excited about if they do ultimately make a bowl game with a 5-7 record.
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