It’s finally Longhorns game week: Sarkisian wants culture, effort to shine through against Colorado State

AUSTIN (KXAN) — If there’s one thing that Texas head football coach Steve Sarkisian is looking for in the season opener Saturday against Colorado State, it’s to showcase the team’s depth.

In his first game week press conference of the season Monday, Sarkisian said everybody on the two-deep depth chart will play in the first half against the Rams, and he expects to dip into his bench even more as the game goes on.

“Our ones are our twos and our twos are our ones,” he said. “Getting all those guys involved in the game and seeing the comfort level of the younger players and getting them more comfortable as the game goes on is important for us.”

The first week is still considered open as far as the depth chart is concerned, Sarkisian said. He wants to see the growth from training camp to game situations and assess where he needs to go from there.

“It’s more about who goes on the field first,” he said. “If you’re a three, there’s a good chance you could play, especially at a specific position. I try to keep it open in Week 1 so guys can continue to show their improvement and development, and this week is important for a lot of our younger players to continue to develop.”

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Sarkisian enters his fourth year with the program with not only expectations to finish near the top of the Southeastern Conference, but to also make a deep run in the newly expanded College Football Playoff. With the way coaches are cycled through in this era of college football, being with a program for four years is getting to be kind of rare, but coming off the heels of Texas’ first CFP appearance last season, the continuity of the staff is helping the culture become second nature.

“I can name 20-30 guys who are in Year 4 in the program, and our culture is their culture,” he said. “It’s not something we’re trying to instill in them, it’s who they are. When you listen to them talk, they speak our language. Sometimes I feel like they’re saying exactly what I’ve been saying for the past four years. That’s the beauty of having continuity as a staff. The players hear a very consistent message.”

Graduate transfer Velton Gardner to help build RB depth

With running backs CJ Baxter and Christian Clark out for the season with knee injuries, Sarkisian talked about potentially adding someone from the transfer portal to help rebuild depth, and he got his man.

Velton Gardner, a graduate transfer from Southern Methodist University, rushed for 137 yards with a touchdown in 10 games for the Mustangs last season. He’s considered a 3-star transfer recruit by 247Sports, and Sarkisian said that Gardner’s style “fits the mold of the backs we have right now.”

He’s a pass catcher out of the backfield with a “natural running ability,” Sarkisian said. Gardner will join Jaydon Blue, Tre Wisner, Jerrick Gibson and Ryan Niblett in the backfield. Niblett was shifted to the backfield from wide receiver after the injury to Clark.

Sarkisian has been an advocate for using the transfer portal for this very purpose — plugging holes in the roster by finding the right fit rather than trying to rebuild with it. He leaned on it heavily with the receiving corps this season, adding Silas Bolden, Isaiah Bond and Matthew Golden, but typically he looks in the portal for a specific player.

“Everyone keeps wanting to complain about the transfer portal, but I’m one to say that I appreciate it,” he said. “We got a free agent right before the season.”

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