Texas Asked for This: Life at No. 1

I’ve gotten so many texts today wondering if the Longhorns’ No. 1 ranking in the Coaches Poll spelled Texas’ doom. I think I’ve been asked “Are we overhyped?” three times and heard the statement “We can only go down from here” twice. Mix in the Paul Finebaum hype about Arch Manning and his recent title prediction, and it’s clear there are a lot of flowers being handed to the Longhorns before the real coronation. There are also plenty of potential jinxes working against Steve Sarkisian and company. It’s being laid bare that this season really is only a success if it ends with the UT Tower emblazoned with the number one.

Though Texas fans concerned about an eventual letdown would do well to remember that the Longhorns set their own expectations for this season long before pundits puffed them up. The made this season about winning a national championship. Just take their own words for it.

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Austin Westlake’s own Michael Taaffe proclaimed he was foregoing the NFL and coming back for the crown. “Growing up here… I dreamed of winning the national championship. The last two playoff appearances are a true testament to how much me and my teammates put into this and how much we poured into one another. But the job’s not over, and the mission’s not finished. It’s time to finish that mission. Longhorn Nation, let’s run it back.”

“First and foremost, I want to win a natty,” DeAndre Moore Jr. said at the beginning of fall camp. “I think we’ve gotten to the doorstep two years in a row—two too many for my liking. So I want to win a national championship.”

I learned quickly during the Steve Sarkisian era to try and match my expectations to the coach’s words about his team. I was optimistic in 2021 to have a new face at the helm, but Sark cautioned fans—and he was right. In 2022, he preached growth and culture over talk of championships. Then in 2023, the focus was on the Big 12 title. Last season, it was about stepping into the SEC and avoiding a letdown after Texas’ first playoff appearance. But now? He’s speaking like someone ready to add the ultimate trophy to the Longhorns’ cabinet.

“Getting the Tower lit up and getting a ‘1’ on the Tower is the ultimate (goal),” Sarkisian recently told ESPN’s Rece Davis. “The hard part here is we’re so good in a lot of sports. Softball wins it this year, and they put the ‘1’ up. Swimming and diving wins the national championship, they put the ‘1’ up. A year ago, volleyball wins it and they put the ‘1’ up. Women’s track and field, they put the ‘1’ up.”

“As much as we’re doing some great things, at the end of the day, you want to be the one that’s taking the picture with your team with that Tower lit up with the ‘1,’” Sarkisian said. “That would be a great moment.”

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Texas is doing nothing to temper the sky-high expectations or distract from the razzmatazz. They invited it all in. Before anyone else knew what this season was about, the Longhorns made their intentions clear.