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Looking at different receiving corps over the years and across the country, fans seemed to become enamored with the big-bodied, athletic "freaks" that make highlight-reel plays because of their advantages in size, strength and athleticism.
After all, a look into the NFL at the stars of the last couple of decades like Calvin Johnson, Roddy White, Julio Jones, Demariyus Thomas, DK Metcalf, DeAndre Hopkins, and many others would have people believe that is the prototypical mold of a true WR1.
However, Texas head coach Steve Sarkisian takes a different approach when evaluating and recruiting his wide receivers because of how the game has evolved offensively, and it makes plenty of sense.
"My thing was I wanted guys who can catch and run with the ball," Sarkisian explained to the media during a press conference on Sept. 9. "When you really watch us, we don't throw many stationary throws where guys are standing there catching the ball. We like to catch the ball on the move so that they can catch and continue to run. Generally speaking, the faster you are on the move, the tougher you are to A) guard and then B) get on the ground once you catch it."
Where It Comes From
Sarkisian hasn't always had this philosophy, but he noticed how much of a difference real speed can make in the game during his brief stint as the head coach of the Washington Huskies, particularly regarding future first-round pick John Ross.
Ross was never really any bigger than 5-foot-11, 190 pounds, but he could move with the ball in his hands. He even set the record for the fastest 40-yard dash at the NFL Combine in 2017 until former Texas wideout Xavier Worthy bested him this year.
"When he got in the program, you could feel the difference of what it looked like," Sarkisian recalled of Ross. "I only had him for a year, and I took another job. We started to try to identify more guys like that."
Sarkisian's Wideout History
Sarkisian has made many stops as a football coach where he had talented wide receivers.
After his time with Ross at Washington, he became the head coach at USC, where the Trojans had Nelson Agholor and two-way player Adoree Jackson who fit Sarkisian's new mold, in addition to a "prototypical No. 1" in JuJu Smith-Schuster.
Sarkisian didn't last long at USC and spent 2016 as an analyst for Alabama when the Crimson Tide's receiving corps was Calvin Ridley, Ardarius Stewart and Robert Foster. He became the Atlanta Falcons' offensive coordinator the following year, a team that, other than Julio Jones, was filled with sub-6-foot speedsters.
Atlanta eventually added Ridley as its envisioned No. 2 receiver.
Upon returning to Alabama in 2019, Sarkisian was able to fully implement his new approach with the likes of Jaylen Waddle, Jerry Judy, DeVonta Smith, John Metchie III and Slade Bolden—all of whom are 6-foot-1 or shorter. Alabama went 24-2 and won a national championship with that offense, and Smith and Waddle have become young NFL stars.
Texas Wide Receivers
Since arriving in Austin in 2021, only one Texas wide receiver with "prototypical No. 1" measurements who has played a significant role in Sarkisian's offense. That was Georgia transfer Adonai Mitchell, who became a second-round selection of the Indianapolis Colts in April.
Xavier Worthy and Jordan Whittington have been the most successful wide receivers at Texas under Sarkisian, and this year's squad only includes two wide receivers taller than 6-foot-2, with most listed in the 5-foot-10 to 6-foot range. All this inspired simply by Ross and the success of Sarkisian's stints in the NFL and at Alabama.
"It's what we've tried to recreate," Sarkisian explained. "I think we've got a pretty good group of guys now that understand the style of play in which we're trying to play the game."
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