Steve Sarkisian adds former Kentucky coach Mark Stoops as special assistant, signaling Texas football is going all-in for the 2026 College Football Playoff.
Texas football is tweaking its staff and stockpiling experience all at the same time.
Steve Sarkisian has added former Kentucky head coach Mark Stoops as a special assistant, bringing one of the SEC’s most seasoned defensive minds to Austin as the Longhorns gear up for a 2026 College Football Playoff push.
And this isn’t a ceremonial hire. Stoops spent 13 seasons leading Kentucky, finishing as the program’s all-time wins leader with a 72-80 record.
While the Wildcats moved on after back-to-back losing seasons, Stoops leaves with deep SEC experience and a defensive resume that spans nearly three decades. Before becoming a head coach in 2013, he built his reputation as a defensive backs coach and coordinator at stops including Miami, Arizona, and Florida State.
Now he joins a Texas football operation that is clearly thinking bigger.
Sarkisian has already surrounded himself with veteran analysts and former coordinators. Paul Chryst and Gary Patterson previously filled similar special assistant roles.
Add Stoops to that mix, along with newly hired defensive coordinator Will Muschamp, and the defensive brain trust suddenly looks formidable.
Stoops and Muschamp share long-standing mutual respect, and that dynamic could quietly shape how Texas evolves on defense heading into the SEC era.
And it doesn’t stop there. Texas also brought in former Michigan co-offensive coordinator Steve Casula as a tight ends analyst.
Casula called plays for the Wolverines in their Citrus Bowl matchup against Texas and helped develop NFL tight end Colston Loveland.
Former Michigan special teams coordinator JB Brown, veteran receivers coach Billy Gonzales - who boasts SEC stops at Florida, LSU and Mississippi State - and former Georgia analyst Garrett Cox round out a growing list of experienced additions.
Stoops is still owed a reported $38 million buyout from Kentucky, meaning he’s not stepping into this role out of necessity.
He’s stepping into it because Texas football presents a chance to compete at the sport’s highest tier again, without the grind of being the head coach.
The message from Austin is unmistakable ... Sarkisian isn’t satisfied with being competitive. He’s constructing a staff designed to withstand the SEC gauntlet and make a legitimate run at the College Football Playoff in 2026.