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21 hours ago
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The Texas Longhorns added Mark Stoops to Steve Sarkisian’s coaching staff on Monday as special assistant to the head coach. Stoops will also collect $6.75 million from the Kentucky Wildcats after his firing back in November, which followed a 5-7 season. It’s unclear what he’ll get salary-wise from the University of Texas. It’s probably not chump change.
As Horns247’s Chip Brown reports, the Longhorns are going all in on the 2026 season. Making the College Football Playoff is a must in Austin, given the $40 million investment in the roster and the coaching staff requiring another $25-30 million in payouts.
“Sources told Horns247 the commitment by Texas to bring in so much expertise in the role of analysts as well as the hiring of Mark Stoops as a special assistant are the latest examples of how the Longhorns are going all in to make a run for the College Football Playoff in 2026,” Brown wrote.
Stoops is a defensive-minded coach who’s worked with safeties/defensive backs in the past. He’ll be working with first-year Longhorns defensive coordinator Will Muschamp and lend a hand to a room that includes Derek Williams Jr., Xavier Filsaime, Jelani McDonald, Jonah Williams, Zelus Hicks, and Toray Davis.
Texas can’t waste time with Arch Manning and Cam Coleman investments
Lone Star State taxpayers are picking up the tab on a very expensive Longhorns roster, not to mention Cody Campbell’s similarly expensive Texas Tech Red Raiders squad. Texas needs to deliver the goods.
Arch Manning is the most expensive player in the history of NIL/rev-share. Cam Coleman was paid a pretty penny to leave the Plains and his hometown Auburn Tigers behind. Those two alone outpace many Power 4 rosters.
When you factor in Colin Simmons, Ryan Wingo, and Justus Terry, plus depth that would start most anywhere else, the Longhorns are a historic investment that could become a historic failure if the results don’t come on the field.
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