Steve Sarkisian's USC, Washington tenures, revisited: Texas coach's record, more to know
Saturday's Big Ten slate features a matchup of two programs familiar to Texas coach Steve Sarkisian, with Washington hosting USC in Week 10 of the college football season.
The Longhorns coach had to rebuild his coaching career after stints with the Huskies and Trojans, but has since taken the Longhorns back to national championship contender status. Sarkisian, a former Sammy Baugh Trophy winner at BYU, began his head coaching career at Washington, where in four-plus years in Seattle he led the Huskies to a 34-29 record, four winning seasons and four bowl game berths.
He never saw the Huskies' fourth bowl game, however, skipping the 2013 Fight Hunger Bowl to take over at USC, where he had served numerous assistant roles under former coach Pete Carroll. However, he saw his tenure with the Trojans end prematurely: He was fired in October of his second season amid a 3-2 start, and was replaced by Clay Helton.
The 50-year-old coach, considered one of the best offensive minds in college football, went from USC to an offensive analyst at Alabama in 2016 under Nick Saban. After a two-year stint with the NFL's Atlanta Falcons, he returned to Tuscaloosa for two years as the Crimson Tide's offensive coordinator.
Following Alabama's 2020 national title, Sarkisian was named the head coach at Texas, a blue blood looking for a return to prominence after multiple seasons of disappointing finishes under Charlie Strong and Tom Herman.
Here's a look back at Sarkisian's career before he became Texas' coach, including his stints at Washington and USC:
Steve Sarkisian coaching career at Washington, USC, revisited
Sarkisian's first head coaching job was at Washington, where he coached from 2009-13 following two seasons as associate head coach, offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach at USC. He inherited a Huskies squad that finished with a remarkable 0-12 record in 2008 under Tyrone Willingham.
Sarkisian finished 5-7 in his first season at Washington — a five-game year-over-year improvement — and nailed a pair of big wins over then-No. 3 USC and a 30-0 triumph over Washington State in the Apple Cup. He was then a top candidate for the USC job after Carroll left to coach the Seattle Seahawks in the NFL, though the job eventually went to Lane Kiffin.
Sarkisian then went 7-6 in his second season with Washington, ending the year with three consecutive wins to reach bowl eligibility for the first time since 2002. The Huskies beat Nebraska 19-7 in the Holiday Bowl to avenge their 56-21 loss to the Cornhuskers in Week 3 of the season.
Sarkisian then won seven games against in 2011 and 2012 — and eight games in 2013. Sarkisian didn't have the most successful tenure at Washington, earning the nickname "Seven-Win Steve." However, it was a big step up from the winless 2008 season for the Huskies, and good enough for him to be offered the USC job ahead of the 2014 season following Kiffin's departure to the NFL to coach the Oakland Raiders.
Sarkisian led the Trojans to a solid season in 2014, finishing with a 9-4 record and another Holiday Bowl win over Nebraska, beating the Cornhuskers 45-42 to finish ranked No. 21 in the final Coaches Poll.
However, the 2015 season didn't quite go as planned.
Sarkisian faced multiple scandals in 2015 that led to his firing in early October. According to ESPN, Sarkisian first attended a preseason event for boosters in which he appeared intoxicated, slurred words and used inappropriate language during his speech. He then issued an apology for his behavior the next day.
On Oct. 11, 2015, USC announced Sarkisian would take an indefinite leave of absence, with Helton taking over as the interim head coach for the time being. USC didn't disclose the reason for his leave, though ESPN reported that his USC staff suspected he was intoxicated for a win over Arizona State.
The next day, USC announced it was firing Sarkisian, who has said he has been sober since his firing at USC in 2015. He is also outspoken about his struggles with alcohol abuse and has become an ally in the space.
Steve Sarkisian coaching record
Here's Sarkisian's year-by-year record as a college head coach:
Conference record in parentheses
- 2009 (Washington): 5-7 (4-5 Pac-12)
- 2010 (Washington): 7-6 (5-4)
- 2011 (Washington): 7-6 (5-4)
- 2012 (Washington): 7-6 (5-4)
- 2013 (Washington): 8-4 (5-4)
- 2014 (USC): 9-4 (6-3)
- 2015 (USC): 3-2* (1-2)
- 2021 (Texas): 5-7
- 2022 (Texas): 8-5
- 2023 (Texas): 12-2
* fired after five games
Sarkisian started his coaching career as the quarterbacks coach at El Camino High School in California in 2000, before he was hired to the same position at USC. He held that position from 2001-03. It was with the Trojans he reunited with offensive coordinator Norm Chow, who was the quarterbacks coach at offensive coordinator at BYU during Sarkisian's playing career.
Sarkisian then became the quarterbacks coach for the Oakland Raiders in 2004, before returning to USC as its quarterbacks coach from 2005-06. He was then promoted to associate head coach and offensive coordinator on top of his role as QB coach from 2007-08 before he was hired as head coach at Washington.
Following his firing from USC in 2015, Sarkisian served as an offensive analyst for Saban at Alabama in 2016, even serving as offensive coordinator for the Tide's 2017 College Football Playoff championship loss to Clemson (one in which the Tide scored 31 points).
He returned to Alabama in 2019, staying two years and helping lead the Crimson Tide to claim Saban's last national title in 2020 before taking over at Texas the following season.
Steve Sarkisian age
Sarkisian is 50 years old, meaning he was 35 when he got his first head coaching job at Washington.