The 2025 off-season has almost reached its last lap. Moving into this upcoming season, Steve Sarkisian and the Texas Longhorns must be surviving on Gatorade. After all, they will need the energy. Sarkisian has to get rid of the bitter taste left from the Cotton Bowl. The CFP Semifinal and the SEC Championship are losses that still hurt. However, the head coach is running high on energy. 

When it comes to their 2025 class, Sarkisian is already counting high on one particular room. Longhorns will field several new faces in key roles this season. But thanks to a stacked wide receiver group with Ryan Wingo, DeAndre Moore, and transfer Emmett Mosley, Sark’s already got a spark to work with.“I feel great about that room. I don’t feel good about it. I feel great about that room. Probably better than most people do on the outside.” Surprisingly, turns out that their 2026 class also has one such room that shows Sarkisian is back with a thunder for the next season too.

As per On3’s Industry Ranking football Team Recruiting Rankings, the Texas Longhorns are quite low in the chart. They are at No.16 with 15 recruits locked in. But so what? Yes, we know that Steve Sarkisian landed their first-ever No. 1 class in the ESPN recruiting rankings era (since 2006) last cycle. Even though their 2026 class is yet to catch up with the momentum, their well-stocked defensive line is already turning heads. Their current defensive tackle class consists of the big trio- Corey Wells, Vodney Cleveland, and Dylan Berymon. But it comes with a snub. On July 2, Inside Texas reported, “Texas has 3 DTs committed in the 2026 class, but with Kendall Guervil to Florida the search for a fourth carries on.” Yes, Sarkisian could have locked in a quadruple net, but Florida Gators head coach Billy Napier was ready with the scissors.

4-star Fort Myers defensive lineman Kendall Guervil closed the doors to Sarkisian’s Longhorns and boarded the Gators’ wagon. Now, this was not something that the Longhorns were expecting. Texas had been the frontrunner ever since his first trip to Austin back in the spring. Even after official visits to Florida State, Georgia, Florida, and Texas, the Longhorns still looked like the favorites. It pretty much came down to a Florida vs. Texas showdown as his decision day got closer. So, Sarkisian is now on the hunt to fill the fourth empty spot. Well, he has got a few targets on his list.

Few of them have already committed to a program while others are yet to commit. For instance, USC commit Jaimeon Winfield has been at the top of Sarkisian’s D-line big board. He is yet to sign in mid-December, and the Texas defensive line coach, Kenny Baker, is in no mood to give up. The next up in line is SMU commit Keith Dotie. The uncommitted ones on Sarkisian’s radar are Peach State product Bryce Perry-Wright and University Lab’s Lamar Brown. Among the duo, Brown would be a huge pickup. But where does Sarkisian’s Longhorns stand in his recruiting race? 

Steve Sarkisian’s search for the final piece of the 2026 D-line puzzle 

Brown is listed as the No. 1 athlete in the 2026 class per On3’s Industry Rankings for his ability to play along the offensive and defensive line. Sarkisian’s Texas hosted him on June 6. But at the same time, he flew off to Miami on May 30, Texas A&M on June 13, and wrapped his official visit spree with LSU on June 20. But what makes him such a hot target for the Longhorns?

Adding the 6-foot-3.5 standout from Erwinville (L.A.) would be a big win for Sarkisian on both sides of the line. Defensively, Texas already has three four-stars locked in. But on the offensive side, they’ve only got one guy committed for the interior—three-star Nicolas Robertson out of Spring, Texas. And since Brown is looking more like an interior lineman at the college level, Sark really can’t afford to let this one slip away. But do the Longhorns have the weapon to secure the commitment from Brown?

Yes. That’s none other than Steve Sarkisian’s staff, Kenny Baker. Landing the 6-foot-3.5 product out of Erwinville (L.A.) would be a solid pickup for Steve Sarkisian on both sides of the trenches. On defense, the Longhorns already have three four-star commits locked down. But offensively, there’s just one pledge for the interior so far—three-star Nicolas Robertson from Spring, Texas. And with Brown projected to play inside at the next level, Sark really can’t afford to let this one get away. Let me know if you’d like an even more laid-back version or keep it closer to formal.

 But Baker and Sarkisian stayed committed to the course. And the end result? Sharma and Charles flipped back to the Longhorns squad. Can the Longhorns land the missing puzzle piece for their fearsome 2026 defensive front?