Longhorns Country

Chris Del Conte Makes Clear Statement on Steve Sarkisian NFL Reports

Texas Longhorns AD Chris Del Conte had choice words for the report surrounding Steve Sarkisian's NFL interest.

Matt Galatzan

Texas Longhorns head coach Steve Sarkisian and Chris Del Conte celebrate a win over Clemson Tigers 38-24 in the NCAA College Football Playoffs first round game at Darrell K Royal Texas Memorial Stadium, Austin, Texas, Saturday, Dec. 21, 2024.
Texas Longhorns head coach Steve Sarkisian and Chris Del Conte celebrate a win over Clemson Tigers 38-24 in the NCAA College Football Playoffs first round game at Darrell K Royal Texas Memorial Stadium, Austin, Texas, Saturday, Dec. 21, 2024. / Ricardo B. Brazziell/American-Statesman / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images
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The Texas Longhorns are just days away from their biggest game of the season on Friday when they head to Arlington to take on the Ohio State Buckeyes in the College Football Playoff semifinals at the Cotton Bowl.

And like clockwork, the distractions have already begun, with reports surfacing from ESPN's Adam Schefter that Texas coach Steve Sarkisian could be drawing NFL interest.

However, when asked by Kirk Bohls of the Houston Chronicle about those rumors, Longhorns athletic director Chris Del Conte was quick to shut them down.

“We’ve got a game to play,” Del Conte said. “I’m not going to comment. Somebody’s just creating fodder before our biggest game. That’s stupid.”

Texas athletic director Chris Del Conte, left
Texas athletic director Chris Del Conte, left, said he plans to discuss a possible contract extension and raise for head football coach Steve Sarkisian, right, in the next few weeks. Sarkisian has three years left on his contract and is the country's 30th highest-paid coach. / Aaron E. Martinez/American-State / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

Recently, Sarkisian was recently asked about potentially heading off to the NFL before the Peach Bowl as well.

Like Del Conte, he also had a very brief response to those questions.

"I have interest in winning on January 1st," Sarkisian said. That's what I have interest in. That's a hypothetical. I'm not doing that with you. I don't know."

That is not a hard no that Sarkisian would not consider overtures from NFL teams. If they come calling, there could be a chance that they could intrigue him.

Even though the NFL is a big draw for college head coaches, Sarkisian has built something special at Texas. He has a stacked roster in place for next season as well, with rising star quarterback Arch Manning ready to take over the reins to the offense.

And while this is certainly something to keep an eye on, it appears that neither Sarkisian or Del Conte are in the mood to entertain hypotheticals at this point.

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Matt Galatzan
MATT GALATZAN

Matt Galatzan is the Managing Editor and Publisher of Texas Longhorns On SI and Texas A&M Aggies On SI and a long-time member of the Football Writer’s Association of America. He graduated from the University of Mississippi, where he studied integrated marketing communications, with minors in journalism and business administration. Galatzan started in the sports journalism industry in 2014 covering the Dallas Mavericks and SMU Mustangs with 247Sports. He then moved to Sports Illustrated's Fan Nation network in 2020, eventually being taking over as the Managing Editor and Publisher of the Longhorns and Aggies sites a year later. You can find Galatzan on all major social media channels, including Twitter on @MattGalatzan.

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