Steve Sarkisian blasts academic inequity in college football

Nov 15, 2025; Athens, Georgia, USA; Texas Longhorns head coach Steve Sarkisian looks on in the first half against the Georgia Bulldogs at Sanford Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Dale Zanine-Imagn Images | Dale Zanine-Imagn Images

“Our players go to school here at Texas, so we actually go to class, not like some other places.”

New defensive coordinator Will Muschamp’s answer to a question about finding the right fits in recruiting stood out in April when he made it, and took on added significance when combined with a rant by Texas Longhorns head coach Steve Sarkisian in a wide-ranging interview focused on college football’s ailments with Matt Hayes published by USA TODAY on Tuesday.

Consider Sarkisian chaffed by academic inequity in college football.

“At Texas, we will only take 50 percent of a player’s academic credit hours,” Sarkisian said. “You may be a semester from graduating, but you’re going all the way back to 50 percent if you play here and want a degree. But at Ole Miss, they can take you. All you have to do is take basket weaving, and you can get an Ole Miss degree.”

It’s a new revelation from Sarkisian, who was still able to secure 22 transfer portal commitments during the winter window, a group large enough and talented enough to slot third nationally in the 247Sports rankings. But in a potential indication of how easy it was for new Ole Miss head coach Pete Golding to get transfers into school in Oxford, the Rebels inked 29 transfers to rank second in the country.

And while Golding didn’t respond to Sarkisian’s comment on social media — he’s no Lane Kiffin — new Florida head coach Jon Sumrall did.