Will Muschamp has one gear.
He knows of only one way to conduct business and that’s with a smoldering intensity born out of decades as one of the best defensive minds in college football.
Muschamp is a defensive coordinator by title but Texas football coach Steve Sarkisian knows him to be so much more. He’s a second head coach working right down the hall, which is a nice luxury in today’s game.
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1/7/2010 – Jay Janner/AMERICAN-STATESMAN – Coach Will Muschamp yells at one of his players in the second quarter at the National Championship Game at the Rose Bowl in Pasadena, California, on Thursday Jan. 7, 2010.
Jay Janner, Austin American-Statesman
So why did Mack Brown’s former head coaching-in-waiting decide to return for a second tour with the Longhorns? He dismisses any talk of it having to do with spending the last two seasons as a defensive analyst at Georgia for coach Kirby Smart — who has had Sark’s number of late — but it can’t hurt to have that valuable intel on your sideline.
It starts with the head coach, according to Muschamp.
“(Sarkisian) does a phenomenal job with our players and our staff,” Muschamp said. “He’s very like-minded in how you run a program and it’s been a lot of fun.”
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When he told Carol Muschamp last fall about the possibility of coaching the Horns again, Wifey was all in. “I’ll go tomorrow,” she told him.
So was oldest son Jackson, a former walk-on quarterback at Georgia.
“Dad, there’s only one Texas,” he said.
At 54, Coach Boom says he has no aspirations to be a head coach again after spending four seasons at Florida and five at South Carolina. Perhaps it’s the less than spectacular 55-51 overall record and the 34-37 mark in SEC games or maybe Muschamp understands that at this point of his career — with 2026 being his 28th season in college football — he can get his juices flowing by blowing up opposing offenses as a full-time DC and not have to worry so much about the other responsibilities that come with occupying the biggest office.
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Texas defensive coordinator Will Muschamp answers questions from reporters at the Moncrief Athletics Complex in Austin on April 9, 2026.
Danny Davis/American-Statesman
Muschamp hopes to build on pass success
Muschamp was a star-maker during his first stint in Austin. All-Americans like defensive ends Brian Orakpo and Sam Acho and safety Earl Thomas left the 512 and enjoyed Pro Bowl careers thanks to his tutelage. And don’t forget his former safety Blake Gideon, who was Muschamp’s play-caller in the secondary of Texas’ last national runner-up. Gideon left his defensive coordinator’s post at Georgia Tech to reunite with his mentor in Austin.
“He’s a lot better coach than he was a player,” Muschamp mused. “I tried to replace him for three years, but he’s an outstanding football coach.”
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The two will team up just like the old days except that Gideon won’t be a defensive back this time around. Ask Blake about his old coach, and apparently little has changed in the 17 years since they last worked together.
“He might have a couple more gray hairs but he’s got the same energy, the same approach, the same expectations, and his consistency over time is what made him who he is,” Gideon said. “I believe in his system and how he does things, and we’ve got a lot of trust.”
Muschamp showed up at last week’s news conference with a black T-shirt that read “NT=NP.” “No Thud equals No Play” means just what you think it means. Muschamp’s players thrived on collisions and the results spoke for themselves. In 2009, the Horns led the country in rushing defense (72.4 yards per game), interceptions (25) and total takeaways (37) and allowed 24 points or less in 12 of their 14 games.
“If you don’t thud at practice and you don’t throw your face in the fan at practice, that means you’re probably not going to be a good tackler,” he said. “The best defenses I’ve been a part of tackled extremely well and right now in offensive football, you better be able to tackle and play in space.”
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He even went as far as to say there are some players on the roster who aren’t bringing the wood to his satisfacttion.
“If you turn down too much, you won’t be on the bus to go to the game,” he said. “You’d be watching it from home.”
Attention to detail is a Muschamp hallmark
Defensive line coach Kenny Baker, who Muschamp is encouraging to take the next step forward to becoming a defensive coordinator, said it’s not unusual for Muschamp to ask the a defensive tackle where the cornerback is supposed to be in a certain formation or vice versa. It’s that attention to detail that could put this defense over the top, along with Muschamp’s signature team-building routine: a slap on the back here, some tough love there, or even funny meme sent to the defense’s group text he created.
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“You can see he’s taking the time to step aside and connect with the guys,” Baker said. “He’s passionate and brings a lot of energy and juice but he’s also very demanding. We learned a long time ago that they don’t care what you know as long as they know you care. He’s done a phenomenal job of building that bridge and connecting with those guys.”
The energy is at red-line levels while Muschamp is installing his new attack, one Sarkisian recognizes from their time working under Nick Saban at Alabama.
“It’s a lot of volume right now,” Sarkisian said earlier in the spring. “I think repetition is important. I think communication is really important. I think learning from one day to the next that we’re not making the same mistakes multiple times in a row is a good indicator that we’re moving in the right direction. But yet, we’re still playing fast, we’re still ball hawking and we’re still playing a physical brand of football that we want to play.”
Blake Gideon has returned to Texas to coach the Longhorns’ secondary for the 2026 season.
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Reconnecting with familiar faces
During his first spring football on the Forty Acres since 2010, Muschamp has reconnected with Acho and younger brother Emmanuel along with Longhorn legends Derrick Johnson and Michael Huff while catching up with former boss Brown who has been a frequent visitor to practice.
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On paper, Muschamp represents an upgrade over former defensive coordinator Pete Kwiatkowski. but football games aren’t won on paper and PK should be credited with piloting one of the best defenses in school history in 2024 before the Horns slipped from No. 3 nationally to No. 40. Muschamp takes over a defense that ranked 28th nationally in points allowed (20.3) and returns premier talent in edge rusher Colin Simmons, safety Jelani McDonald and a potential star in linebacker Ty’Anthony Smith. He loses longtime anchors Anthony Hill, Jr. at linebacker, Michael Taaffe at safety and Manny Muhammad at cornerback.
Of course there has an adjustment period with him taking over a defensive room that experienced some nice successes: two national semifinal appearances over the last three seasons as Kwiatkowski ran the show.
On the field, Muschamp earned a reputation as an aggressive defensive player-caller who, in the mode of longtime secondary coach Duane Akina, didn’t mind putting his cornerbacks on an island in press coverage. But he understands that it can’t be an every-down strategy against today’s SEC offenses.
“You can’t live in it but we certainly believe in getting our hands on people,” he said.
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It’s an interesting mix with Muschamp and Sarkisian, a pair of former Saban assistants who have forged successful careers built largely as popular players’ coaches.
With Brown, Muschamp came within one game of winning it all.
Sark has been on the semifinal doorstep a couple of times and is looking for that special breakthrough season.
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Muschamp could be the final piece to this six-year puzzle.