Golden: Texas pass rushers sure are spreading the wealth, much to quarterbacks' dismay

Back in the spring, I asked Steve Sarkisian how he would be able to keep all of his wideouts happy with a such a deep roster of pass catchers.

When asked about the bevy of receivers, he brought up that 2019 season as Alabama's offensive coordinator when he was tasked with distributing the football to talented wideouts Devonta Smith, Jerry Jeudy, Jaylen Waddle and Henry Ruggs, all of whom became first-round NFL draft picks.

“Everyone got to eat,” Sarkisian said.

Speaking of eating, the No. 3 Longhorns have revealed some sharks in the pass rushing department and Sarkisian may have some the same wealth of riches in an area in which the Horns struggled last season.

Through three games, six different players have accounted for the team’s eight sacks, which is obviously a good thing for a unit that ranked 71st last season with 27 total. Texas is on pace to finish with with 34 if the Horns play in a bowl game, which would be the most since the 2016 team's 41. Notably that squad — which was led by Breckyn Hager’s 6½ — had 17 players credited with a least half a sack.  The sacks didn’t add up to a banner ranking as that unit finished No. 91 in total defense. The 2023 Horns are No. 22 entering conference play at Baylor.

They’re getting great disruption on the interior from T’Vondre Sweat, touchdown maker Byron Murphy II, Alfred Collins and Vernon Broughton while end Barryn Sorrell came up with his first sack against Wyoming. Youngsters Ethan Burke and Anthony Hill Jr. also have emerged.

A depth of sack makers can make for fresher legs at crunch time.

“A year ago, some guys were on that field for a lot of snaps and then it came down to critical third downs, and they just didn’t have enough juice in their tack to get the quarterback on the ground,” Sarkisian said.

Not a problem so far.

“Now I think we’re reaping the the benefits of a rotation on the defensive front to apply pressure to the quarterback and ultimately get him on the ground,” Sarkisian said.

They’re coming from all angles in the pass rush and there appears to be plenty of QB steak to go around.

They’re eating.

Golden: An Alabama hangover led to the slow Texas start (or so Texas hopes)

Life with Zach: so far, so good

Lake Travis ex Wilson shines: Garrett Wilson is no stranger to scoring touchdowns at AT&T Stadium, so it came as no surprise to see him reach the end zone in his first game in the Metroplex since his final high school game at Lake Travis.

His New York Jets have a long road ahead of them if they expect to reach the postseason without future Hall of Fame quarterback Aaron Rodgers, but it won’t come from a lack of effort, especially when it comes to their sophomore speedster.

Bohls: Jonathon Brooks wows, but Texas' rushing attack too often underwhelming in win

The Dallas Cowboys routed his New York Jets 30-10 on Sunday, but Wilson, a former Lake Travis two-sport star, put a charge into the 512 viewing audience when he got loose for a 68-yard catch-and-run touchdown.

It was the only big play the loaded Dallas defense gave up on the afternoon, but not the first time Wilson has visited the end zone on one of the league’s fastest tracks. Back in 2018, he scored on a nine-yard reception from then-Cavaliers quarterback Hudson Card in a 51-10 loss to Galena Park North Shore in a Class 6A Division I state semifinal.

In just his second season, Wilson is already quickly establishing himself as a bonafide star. His juggling tip-drill touchdown catch in the opener — Wilson told reporters “that’s not something you practice” in postgame  — was the offensive highlight in an upset win of the Bills that was marred by Rodgers’ season-ending Achilles injury.

More: These are the best game photos as the Texas Longhorns take on the Wyoming Cowboys

Even so, he appears to be establishing a good rapport with Rodgers’ replacement Zach Wilson, whose first two seasons lived up to the standards expected from a No. 2 overall pick. Wilson threw three interceptions Sunday.

Wilson, on the other hand, may go down as an absolute steal as the 10th overall pick once he hangs up the cleats, hopefully up there with a fellow Texan who went 10th in the 2017 draft. A kid by the name of Patrick Mahomes.

Definitely ready for Prime time

Prime Time takes on Colorado: I walked into the house just before 3 a.m. Sunday and it wasn’t because I was out late shaking my moneymaker in the warehouse district, but because I couldn’t tear myself away from a TV screen in the Royal-Memorial Stadium press box.

More: No. 4 Texas admittedly wasn't its best against Wyoming, 'but we found a way to win'

After Kirk Bohls, Danny Davis, Thomas Jones and I finished our interviews following the Wyoming game, we went back up to write and file our stories, but were subjected to the most thrilling distraction of the college football weekend.

Deion Sanders has turned Colorado into must-see football in just three weeks, and the latest —  a 43-35 double-overtime home win over rival Colorado State — was chock filled with drama well before the kickoff at a packed Folsom Field.

More: National reaction to Texas' 31-10 win over Wyoming: 'A win is a win'

Colorado State coach Jay Norvell, a former Texas assistant, took a veiled shot at Sanders for wearing a ball cap and his Blenders Prime 21 sunglasses during interviews while mentioning his own upbringing, but the man many call Coach Prime had the last laugh in an absolute thriller that surpassed the incredible pregame hype, especially with the Rams coming in as a 24-point underdog.

Sanders may be unconventional in his approach, but he has already captured the imagination of a Colorado fan base that has been in a deep slumber in the 17 seasons since losing 70-3  to eventual national champion Texas in the 2005 Big 12 title game. The Buffs have recorded just one — count it, one — full winning season since then, not counting the 2020 pandemic year when the team finished 4-2. In the same time frame, nine different head coaches have come and gone.

He also has brought star power to Boulder. ESPN's College GameDay was in town with movie/wrestling star Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson on set. Rapper Lil Wayne performed while the Colorado head coach danced with fans near the stage. Dallas Cowboys Hall of Fame wideout Michael Irvin and Terrell Owens have been frequent visitors to practices and games.

Who would have dreamed that the Buffs would be ranked this season, but they’re No. 19 and enter Saturday’s showdown at No. 10 Oregon as 19-point underdogs, a massive spread for a matchup of ranked teams.

More: Big plays from Barryn Sorrell help turn tide as Texas football pulls away from Wyoming

I wouldn’t underestimate them because they have already made a habit of defying the odds. Vegas oddsmakers had the over/under for Colorado’s total wins at three before the season and here they sit at 3-0 three weeks in.

One note on Sanders’ sunglasses: after Norvell’s comment, Sanders provided specs for each of his players and the GameDay crew as well. It came on the same day the glasses were made available to the public. Apparently, sales went through the roof.

“We have officially broke the internet today,” Blenders CEO Chase Fisher told the USA Today on Friday. “The timing of that couldn’t have been any better. That comment directed at sunglasses and then us releasing the (Sanders) collection today was peanut butter meets jelly. The timing was insane.”

Sanders, who was profiled on "60 Minutes" on Sunday night, is winning on the field and at the bank.

It’s some story.

This article originally appeared on Austin American-Statesman: Texas football has been quickly racking up quarterback sacks