Texas Longhorns Head Coach Steve Sarkisian speaks during the Coaches' Press Conference at AT&T Stadium, Jan. 9, 2024. Both coaches answered questions from the media during the conference, and will face each other in the Cotton Bowl College Football Playoff semi-final game on Friday. Sara Diggins/American-Statesman / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

Texas Longhorns Extend GM Brandon Harris - REPORT

Originally posted on Texas Longhorns on SI
By Jon Alfano | Last updated Jan 19, 2025 3:29 PM ET

It's a big weekend for the leadership of Texas Longhorns football.

On Saturday, head coach Steve Sarkisian agreed to a contract extension that keeps him in Austin through the 2031 season, putting any NFL rumors to bed. Now on Sunday, general manager Brandon Harris has agreed to a contract extension as well, per Matt Zenitz of CBS Sports and 247Sports. The new contract will reportedly make him "one of the nation's highest-paid college football front office officials."

Harris, a former quarterback at LSU and North Carolina, just completed his first season as the Longhorns' general manager, though he had been on staff as a director of recruiting since 2021. Together with Sarkisian, the 29-year-old has helped guide the Longhorns back to national prominence after a bleak decade in the 2010s.

Shortly after Harris' promotion last year, Sarkisian spoke very highly of the rising executive.

“I wanted to make sure that I had somebody in that role that that I was connected to on another level and I think my time with Brandon has allowed me to do that,” Sarkisian said. “I think he thinks a lot like me, which is important — as much as I try to kind of oversee it all, I want to make sure if I can’t be in a meeting that somebody is thinking and speaking on my behalf that is on the same wavelength as me.”

“I just couldn’t be more excited,” Sarkisian continued. “I think he’s a rock star in our profession and he’s gonna be in high-level roles for a long time.”

Harris is one of several former players to become an executive in the NIL era, and judging by his body of work, he may be one of the best to do so.

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

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