If the Texas Longhorns want to have a chance at toppling Alabama on the road, they'll need Xavier Worthy to be bring his A-game as a player and leader.
According to Worthy, after the Longhorns blowout win over Rice this past weekend, coach Steve Sarkisian wasted no time in shifting his attention to next week's big game against Alabama. The Longhorns were able to secure a 37-10 victory over Rice, which has helped the team build up their confidence heading into their tougher matchup this Saturday.
Sarkisian continues to insist that the Longhorns are focused on nothing but themselves ahead of arguably their biggest game of the season. But behind the scenes, he's pumping his players up for a highly talented opponent, something he instilled in Worthy after the Rice win.
"I'm talking about like right when we got in the locker room, Sark’s after game speech is 'My feet are in Bryant-Denny Stadium,'” Worthy said on Saturday. “So I feel like we need to match his energy and be where he’s at."
As a former Alabama assistant with close ties to Nick Saban, Sarkisian has some understandable extra motivation for this game. And who wouldn't? This familiarity along with how Texas' 20-19 loss to the Tide ended last season gives Sark and the Longhorns every reason to feel fired up.
As for Worthy, he's emerged as a true leader for this team. Based on his talented play, new-found voice, and experience playing the Tide last season, there's no one better to "match the energy" of Sarkisian.
In their game against Rice, the deep connection with Worthy and Quinn Ewers was evidently felt. Worthy led all receivers with seven catches for 90 yards while adding on a 21-yard punt return.
Worthy made it clear as soon as the Rice game ended where the expected energy level should be at. Now it's time to see who's going to follow suit.
