Sep 20, 2025; Austin, Texas, USA; Texas Longhorns head coach Steve Sarkisian leads his team on to the field before a game against the Sam Houston State Bearkats at Darrell K Royal-Texas Memorial Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Scott Wachter-Imagn Images Scott Wachter-Imagn Images

Steve Sarkisian Believes He Found One of the Secrets for His Teams Success

Originally posted on Texas Longhorns on SI
By Henry Hipschman | Last updated Sep 23, 2025 2:00 PM ET

In the Texas football offense's best performance of the season last Saturday, quarterback Arch Manning showed Longhorn fans all that he was capable of on the football field. Seeing his team excel on both sides of the ball, head coach Steve Sarkisian believes he knows what he needs to do to keep performing as they did against the Bearkats in the future.

"What I've learned is they're better when they're loose," Sarkisian said in a recent media availability. "They're better when they have a little bit more fun...when they can have a level of intensity but still have fun doing it."

Texas Football's Dominate Performance over Sam Houston

Scott Wachter-Imagn Images

Texas must have had plenty of fun against Sam Houston after a 55-0 rout of the Bearkats. Manning might've had the most fun of all the Longhorns, completing 18 of 21 pass attempts for 309 yards and three passing touchdowns.

On the ground, Manning also rushed for eleven yards and two touchdowns. It was an explosive performance and a much-welcomed one after a disappointing start to the season for the Texas offense.

"Sometimes this group can go a little too far, because they want to do it right so well, but then they don't perform at their best," Sarkisian said. "I've got to try to get them in the right space so that I can get the best out of them, and I think part of that is them loosening up, having a little bit more fun with one another."

Another impressive performance from a Longhorn who certainly had fun in Saturday's win came from wide receiver Ryan Wingo. Wingo had his best day on the field so far, catching the ball four times for 93 yards and two touchdowns. Wide receiver DeAndre Moore Jr. also came alive with five receptions for 79 yards.

Now heading into a bye week, at the very least, Saturday's win provides the Longhorns with some much-needed confidence.

"There's nothing like confidence," Sarkisian said. "You know, confidence...makes us all better players, makes us all better coaches. The belief in what you do and why you do what you do, so on and so forth."

Texas will have a chance to bottle that confidence and Saturday's performance, fine-tune the little things and head into the Florida matchup on Oct. 4 with fresh legs and a positive mindset. In the meantime, the team will enjoy what is likely a much-welcomed bye week.

This article first appeared on Texas Longhorns on SI and was syndicated with permission.

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