What do thermostats and Longhorn football players have in common? More than you might think

AUSTIN (KXAN) — Texas Longhorns football coach Steve Sarkisian likes to talk about thermostats and thermometers during spring practices, and it has nothing to do with a central air system.

The metaphor he’s making is about players who provide the energy in practice, or as Sarkisian describes it, “they set the temperature.” Those, of course, are the thermostats. The players who are thermometers react to what’s set by the thermostats. Sarkisian wants more thermostats.

“We need more guys that take the field with real intent, with great energy,” he said, “so that the other players that may not know quite yet can fall in line to what that looks like.”

Some examples of thermostats from Monday’s practice, Sarkisian said, were defensive linemen Alfred Collins, Barryn Sorrell and Ethan Burke, along with running backs CJ Baxter and Jaydon Blue. He also mentioned UTSA transfer defensive lineman Trey Moore, saying he’s playing with an edge.

“That guy is wired right up front,” Sarkisian said. “You can tell when a guy comes into the program has a chip on his shoulder. Trey has got something to prove, and I think there’s some value to that in the portal when you can recruit a guy that’s not coming from a big school. He’s a really talented player, and we saw that when we played against him. He practices with real intent and it starts with his approach. He tries to squeeze every drop out of the day.”

Moore was the American Athletic Conference defensive player of the year last season for the Roadrunners, tallying 45 tackles and 14 sacks. He finished second in FBS in total sacks and sacks per game last season and now he adds another dimension to an already deep position group for the Longhorns.

Texas is four practices into its spring slate with two more to go this week, and he said it’s all about maximizing this period to set a foundation for fall camp and the 2024 season.

Saturday’s practice last week was the first time players went full pads, and Sarkisian said it was “really physical.”

“We’re finding out about guys as they go and what it looks like,” he said. “One of the challenges you find with spring ball is really trying to maximize these 15 opportunities.”

Wednesday’s and Friday’s practices are important, Sarkisian said, because the team will have three days off until they pick it up again next Tuesday. All the spring practices culminate in the Orange-White spring scrimmage, scheduled for April 20 at DKR-Texas Memorial Stadium.

The competitiveness of his players is another thing about spring ball Sarkisian is enjoying. He gave an example of when a young player made a mistake that could have hurt another player during Saturday’s practice, and before any of the coaches could say anything, several veteran players were there to address and correct the young player.

“They were like wolves,” Sarkisian said. “As highly competitive as we are and the way we’re practicing with intensity, they’re learning how to do it and coaching each other. That’s the beauty of it, and that’s the leadership I’ve been talking about. There aren’t one or two voices to tell a guy he’s not doing something right, we’ve got a multitude of guys doing that.”