Steve Sarkisian never expected an offhand booster-event joke to spark college football’s summer controversy. When Texas Tech challenged Texas for a game after his viral comments, the Longhorns’ coach clarified that it wasn’t about the Red Raiders. Instead, he offered his stance on the scheduling debate.
Appearing on The Triple Option, Steve Sarkisian explained that his viral comments about a team in Texas playing a schedule that his “twos and threes could probably go undefeated against” were aimed at a bigger issue. It’s a jab at how the CFP committee evaluates the strength of the schedule.
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“It wasn’t a slight against Tech,” he said on the show. “I know Tech’s a good football team. I have no umbrage against that.”
But when Steve Sarkisian first said it last month, everyone thought it was a jab at Texas Tech. Head coach Joey McGuire fired back by challenging Texas to open a season in Lubbock, while billionaire booster Cody Campbell added fuel to the fire with a dare, saying, “Schedule us then.” Rather than escalating the war of words, the Texas head coach just dropped the fact.
“I’ve got enough tough schedules that I think about anybody in the country has,” he said. “I don’t need to add another top 10-ranked team to our schedule right now.”
Sarkisian isn’t new to this argument. After Texas missed the 2025 CFP as a 10-2 team, he told reporters in Orlando: “You look at the principles of the CFP. The first bullet point is strength of schedule. We need to honor the criteria.” He warned that if the committee doesn’t value tough schedules, Texas would be willing to reconsider how they approach the nonconference scheduling beyond 2027. This Texas Tech controversy isn’t ego, but the same frustration he’s voiced for months.
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The exchange has been entertaining, but Sarkisian’s underlying point deserves attention. Texas enters 2026 with what ESPN’s Bill Connelly ranked as college football’s most difficult preseason schedule. The Longhorns face Ohio State, Tennessee, Oklahoma, Florida, Ole Miss, LSU, and Texas A&M. Texas Tech’s path is smoother: Abilene Christian, Sam Houston, Houston, Oregon State, plus a manageable Big 12 rotation.
That’s why Steve Sarkisian keeps returning to the same question. His main concern is how the CFP committee evaluates teams with very different schedules. He believes a team that goes 9-3 against one of the toughest schedules in the country could be just as deserving of a playoff spot as a team that wins 11 games against weaker competition. That’s why he keeps bringing up the strength of schedule.
The bigger point Steve Sarkisian was trying to make
Steve Sarkisian pointed to the first two years of the 12-team CFP format, where no team with a 9-3 record has earned a playoff berth. As a result, he’s curious to see whether the committee will reward teams that survive a brutal schedule, even if they finish with three losses.
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“More of my concern is how is the CFP committee going to acknowledge that and acknowledge the schedules that people are playing,” he added. “Where does 9-3 fit? Because for two years now, no 9-3 team has made the College Football Playoff. 10-2 is kind of that Mendoza line. And it’s going to be interesting to see if 9-3 coming out of the SEC and/or the Big Ten. There’s some tough schedules in the Big Ten this year, too, is it going to make the CFP or not.”
That’s the real debate for Steve Sarkisian. As for Joey McGuire, there doesn’t appear to be any bad blood. The Longhorns’ head coach revealed the two have actually been joking about the situation through text messages. So despite a month of social-media fireworks, the coaches seem perfectly fine.
But while fans keep dreaming about Texas vs. Texas Tech, Steve Sarkisian is focused on a much bigger challenge. Before worrying about adding the Red Raiders, Texas has to survive what may be the most unforgiving schedule in the nation.
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