The University of Texas has blamed technical glitches with ESPN's equipment for head coach Steve Sarkisian's abrupt snub of sideline reporter Holly Rowe following the Longhorns' 24-23 comeback win over Ohio State on Saturday night.
As ESPN's Chris Fowler threw coverage down to the field after the final whistle, Rowe approached Sarkisian for a postgame interview. Instead of answering her questions, Sarkisian shouted over her, "Texas fight. That's called Texas fight. Hook 'Em!" before throwing up a Longhorns hand sign with his left hand and turning away to join his celebrating team.
Sarkisian is the head coach at Texas, one of college football's most prominent programs, and the win over Ohio State came in a marquee Week 2 matchup broadcast nationally on ESPN. Rowe is a veteran sideline reporter widely regarded as one of the most respected figures in the sport.
Fans call the response 'classless'
Video of the exchange spread quickly on social media, with fans criticizing Sarkisian's behavior toward Rowe as "classless." One fan pointed out that Texas quarterback Arch Manning, unlike his head coach, was willing to stop for a postgame interview.
A Texas spokesperson later clarified the sequence, saying technical issues with ESPN's equipment had resurfaced on the field after the game, contributing to Sarkisian's hurried exit from the interview.
An awkward halftime encounter
The postgame incident followed a separate awkward moment between Sarkisian and the ESPN broadcast at halftime, when Texas trailed Ohio State 20-3. Rowe's fellow sideline reporter, Rutledge, had been waiting to speak with Sarkisian during the interval, but the camera panned to her just as the coach was running down the tunnel toward the locker room.
"Alright, we actually just lost Sark because he had to go," Rutledge told viewers. "I'm sorry about that, you guys. He waited for a long time. Credit to him for waiting. We'll try to get him on the way out of the half."
Rutledge was also unable to catch Sarkisian as he headed back out for the second half. She later told viewers that Sarkisian had been patient and had even apologized to the ESPN crew, despite the network being the one that owed him an apology.
"I do want to make sure we clear something up," Rutledge said. "[Steve Sarkisian] did decline the interview at the half. He had waited a long time, been very patient with some technical issues that we had. He apologized to us. We should be apologizing to him, which we did."
Fans point to ESPN's coverage
Several fans online suggested the network's own missteps at halftime had set up Sarkisian's terse postgame response to Rowe.
"Maybe ESPN shouldn't have made him stand around at half time waiting to come to him before kissing Ryan Days a**. Tell the whole story. Sorry Holly took the brunt of it but after that win and the snub at half time he wanted to be with his team not ESPN," one fan wrote.
Another fan speculated that residual frustration from the halftime snub carried into the postgame moment, writing that Sarkisian appeared to still be "a little sore" after being blown off before the first half.
Manning reflects on the comeback
While Rowe was being brushed aside by Sarkisian, Rutledge instead spoke with Arch Manning, the Texas quarterback and grandson of former NFL quarterback Archie Manning, about the team's fourth-quarter turnaround. Texas scored 21 unanswered points to erase a 20-3 deficit and beat Ohio State 24-23.
Manning said the win was driven partly by memories of last year's loss to the Buckeyes. "We couldn't lose to them again," he said. "I had nightmares about that game last year. It wasn't pretty but we found a way to win."
