What Steve Sarkisian Had to Say After Texas’ 37-31 Loss to Washington
The Texas Longhorns’ 2023 season came to an end on Monday night with a 37-31 loss to the second-ranked Washington Huskies in the Allstate Sugar Bowl.
It was truly a season of resurgence for a program that has failed to reach its potential for well over a decade now, and sends them into the SEC with a wave of momentum.
Still, losing in the manner that Texas did on Monday night will sting for the foreseeable future, and there’s not much that is going to change that. Steve Sarkisian and the Longhorns had five plays inside the Washington red zone before time expired but couldn’t punch it in.
Add to that two costly fumbles and 10 penalties and there were plenty of opportunities squandered on a night that belonged to the Huskies. It’s worth noting that UW quarterback Michael Penix was exceptional in this game, going 29-38 for 430 yards and two touchdowns, exhibiting pinpoint precision throughout the night.
After the heartbreaking loss, Sarkisian expressed his pride in what the Longhorns showed throughout the game, and said that their resilience is indicative of the team they’ve had all season long.
“Just how proud I was of them this season. You know, the way they fought there and the resiliency they showed in the second half and in the fourth quarter is just indicative of this team,” said Sarkisian. “These guys are fighters and they’ve grown into that; it’s not what we were a few years ago. We’ve grown into it. And to give ourselves a chance the way that we did there late in the game, [I’m] really proud of them. With all the self-inflicted wounds that we had tonight, we lost to a good team that played well, but we gave ourselves a chance. We just we just came up short.”
Texas figures to lose several key pieces from a team that came up just short of a national championship appearance in 2023, but looks to return several key cogs as well, with Quinn Ewers at the top of the list.
However, the schedule is daunting next season, with games against Michigan, Georgia, Oklahoma, and Texas A&M all on the docket.
The Longhorns will kick off their inaugural SEC season on August 31 against Colorado State before hitting the road to take on Michigan in the Big House on September 7.
