Texas Longhorns head coach Steve Sarkisian, who has taken heat for his offense struggling to consistently pop off explosive plays, just pulled a move straight out of his old Alabama playbook. This dude incorporated more 10 personnel groupings on 11 plays this season, and the production in Saturday’s loss to Oklahoma was absolutely wild: Texas scored two touchdowns on the four plays they ran with four wide receivers on the field.
Sarkisian’s Super Rare Offensive Twist Actually Delivering
Think about this: Sarkisian has called approximately 7,100 plays over eight seasons as a head coach, and he has used 10 personnel in less than 100 of them. This is the first time since he was the offensive coordinator at Alabama in 2019 that 10 personnel has even factored into his play calling. For someone who gets criticized for not delivering the fireworks, busting out something this rare and having it work? That’s a statement. This isn’t just a tweak, it’s a significant shift, a gamble, and against Oklahoma, it paid off big time for the Longhorns offense.
Unpacking How Longhorns Offense Got It Done
The first strike came early in the second quarter. Junior wide receiver Ryan Wingo was the initial beneficiary, snagging a 34-yard touchdown catch from senior quarterback Arch Manning. Picture it: a bunch formation to the field with two other wide receivers, Wingo working down the seam. That formation forced the field safety to align on the hashmarks, while junior wide receiver Cam Coleman’s deep route totally occupied the boundary safety. That left the middle-field wide open, giving Manning an easy read and rip for the score. Pure genius in spacing and concept.
Then, at a critical moment in the fourth quarter, a 10 personnel grouping helped Texas tie the game, responding directly to Oklahoma’s go-ahead pick six. We’ve seen marginal improvement in the red-zone touchdown rate this season, and these high red-zone calls from Sarkisian are a big reason why. This time, in a 2×2 formation, Texas got a dream matchup. Jermaine Bishop Jr. was lined up outside, and Wingo’s out-breaking route drew the attention of both the cornerback and safety. That left a linebacker split wide in the boundary over Wingo, who Bishop exploited. Bishop got the linebacker to bite on his hitch route, then unleashed his elite acceleration to create massive separation, making the late-arriving safety completely miss on the 15-yard touchdown reception. Seriously, go watch that cut, Bishop’s acceleration is just ridiculous. Both of these touchdowns from the 10 personnel benefited from increased reps in practice last week, showing this was a focused effort to get these plays dialed in.
Despite the loss to Oklahoma, seeing Sarkisian dig deep into his bag and pull out plays he hasn’t touched in years, then having them deliver two huge touchdowns, is a major spark. It shows a willingness to adapt, to push out of his comfort zone, and when it works like this, it gives this offense a whole new dimension. Longhorns fans should be pumped to see if this is a sign of more explosive plays to come.
This article was created with AI assistance and published under Seattle On Tap’s editorial standards. See our Editorial Policy.
Originally reported by Yahoo Sports.
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