Fans and reporters were buzzing when Texas moved into the top spot in the Associated Press Top 25 poll.

Social media was all in a tizzy Wednesday when news broke that UNLV quarterback Matthew Sluka up and quit his team over an apparent $100,000 NIL dispute.

When things happen in college football, people generally want to know what major influencers think. They want to know what people at Texas think.

Steve Sarkisian remains steadfast — head down, eyes on the prize, stick to the Longhorns’ knitting. That’s why the only thing that consumes Sarkisian’s mind is Saturday’s opener against Mississippi State (1-3, 0-1 SEC).

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“Please don’t be offended by my answer,” Sarkisian said on Wednesday’s SEC coaches’ teleconference. “What you think of us is irrelevant. What we do on the field matters.

“You know, that is what it is,” he continued. “And that’s the belief our team has. You know, in this day and age of the polls, polls are kind of irrelevant. There’s 12-team College Football Playoff and to finish number one at the end, you're going to have to go earn it.”

The SEC coaches call is a chance for reporters outside the normal coverage area to ask questions of other coaches. It usually turns into a hot-topic-of-the-day forum, and there’s nothing wrong with that.

How Sarkisian handled Wednesday was a direct reflection of his inability to be distracted.

The UNLV story is a hot topic, to be sure. Sarkisian stiffed-armed questions about future NIL revenue sharing the same way he wants Jaydon Blue to handle the Bulldogs.

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“I don’t know about the future. I've got a pretty big meal on my plate right now this season,” Sarkisian said. “So I don't know what it’s going to look like next year. I'll be honest with you. I don’t even know how much money we’re supposed to share with or vice versa. I really have no clue.

“What I do know is we’ve got a really good culture here at the University of Texas,” he added. “We pour into that culture. We've got a team that tries to serve one another, and I think that that’s something that we try to hold on to. We think it’s relatively unique to us that maybe we don’t have to deal with as many of those issues that maybe some other schools have to.”

He sidestepped a question about possibly redshirting players. Saturday marks UT’s fifth game of the season. Currently, players who play four games or less can still claim redshirt status.

“Not worried about it at all,” Sarkisian said. “We’re going to try to play the best players we can and give us the best chance to win.”

Sarkisian did talk about Texas’ depth, the development of UT’s pass rushers and Mississippi State’s offense. He loves talking ball. Sarkisian is likely to give an update on quarterback Quinn Ewers on Thursday during his regular mid-week visit with Texas media.

Just don’t try to force this laser-focused coach off his intended target.

“We’re obviously really excited, SEC opener here at DKR, should be a great environment,” Sarkisian said. “First opportunity for us to chase a SEC championship, and I think our guys are practicing hard, and we’re looking forward to it.”