Is Steve Sarkisian going to make Nick Saban eat his own words? More often than not, negative narratives serve as fuel for better performance. The Texas Longhorns already got a bruise from the retired Alabama HC who didn’t think their transition to a new conference would be fruitful. But would it?

Texas and Oklahoma are the newcomers in the SEC this season as they joined the existing 14 programs. Sarkisian’s team has been under constant scrutiny as it is a relatively successful program that dominated the Big 12 last season. Despite their success, Nick Saban’s reality check on the Longhorns stole the attention of college football. But is a shocker in the form of Texas on its way to humble the SEC powerhouses like Alabama and Georgia? 

Many feel Georgia could be the best SEC team this season, but that’s not what everyone thinks. On July 22’s YouTube episode of Late Kick with Josh Pate, he lauded Kirby Smart and the Bulldogs, but they were not his favorite to win the SEC. Even SEC powerhouse Alabama, under new head coach Kalen DeBoer, fell short of his confidence for the 2024 season. Instead, he said, “I got Texas winning the SEC which I don’t need to tell anyone would be a pretty big story but as of right now, I got Texas winning the SEC.” 

For a new team to win the conference title will come with lots of pressure and drawbacks. Georgia and Alabama usually dominate the SEC, with their latest wins in 2022 and 2023, respectively. So, when Texas entered the conference with a lot of buzz that they could dominate it in their first year, not many people, including Nick Saban, took it cheerfully. 

Nick Saban’s thoughts on Texas’ potential SEC dominance

During his appearance on SEC Now on July 15, Nick Saban didn’t have to think twice about his feelings for Texas as they joined the SEC. The 72-year-old said, “What kind of tickles me is all these people asking these questions about how Texas always ran the conference they were in. They’re not gonna run the SEC.” It’s a direct hit on Sarkisian and the Longhorns who defeated him and Alabama 34-24 last season. 

True, it’s not going to be a walk in the park for the Longhorns this season as five SEC teams won at least 10 games last season. But Texas is also loaded with talents, especially in starting QB Quinn Ewers who recorded 3,497 yards and 22 TDs in their 12-2 season last year. Their future in the SEC will remain shrouded in mystery until the real action begins in a month.