Saturday’s road win at No. 10 Michigan doesn’t change the trajectory of where the Texas Longhorns program is headed. It doesn’t change anything, really.

The 31-12 victory at Michigan Stadium, home of the defending national champions, is merely more confirmation of the direction Texas is headed under fourth-year coach Steve Sarkisian.

Straight ahead into championship waters.

Texas football fans should have national title dreams after dominating Michigan at home

Bring on No. 1 Georgia and whatever the SEC can muster. The Texas Longhorns are ready for anything.

A burnt-orange battleship as big as Texas cannot turn on a dime, as fans saw through the Charlie Strong and Tom Herman eras. It takes years of meticulous planning, years of recruiting wins and years of building a championship mindset.

No. 3 Texas is 2-0 this season with big games ahead against Oklahoma, Georgia, Florida, Kentucky and Texas A&M. It’ll be a grind, for sure. But all signs point toward a battleship that is headed in the right direction under Sarkisian. Full power.

“We’ve gone into Tuscaloosa and played and won. We’ve played in a Big 12 championship game. We’ve played in the College Football Playoff. So none of the moments should feel too big for us anymore,” Sarkisian said in his post-game comments. “And that’s just what I commended them for in the locker room.

“You know, this is who we are. This is how we know how to play.”

ESPN’s Paul Finebaum still has No. 1 Georgia ranked above Texas football and everyone else

Paul Finebaum seemed impressed with the Longhorns, but the longtime national voice of SEC football still has Georgia ranked above Texas and everyone else. Speaking on ESPN’s “SportsCenter,” Finebaum gave his opinions about multiple teams after a wild day in college football. He still puts the No. 1-ranked Bulldogs atop the heap. “I’m Paul-in, and […]

Strong once believed the “cake was baked.” It wasn’t even close. Herman said numerous times that “winning is hard.” It’s not, at least not if you have the right talent.

Sarkisian has laid down numerous markers that he wants to win big. A coach who once had his entire professional life ripped from him at USC isn’t going to squander this second chance at Texas.

“When we can go in with the right mentality, and we can embrace the challenge, but also keep our mental intensity, there’s that fine line of not crossing over, still staying poised and composed, I thought we're able to do that,” Sarkisian said. “But we’ve been doing that, and I think that's something I wanted to impress upon our players is like that’s just who we are now.

“So again, fi this helped reiterate that to them, I think it was good for them.”

If team’s take on the personality of their coach, then Sarkisian won this game starting last Monday. His confidence in the Monday presser was notable. “It’s a heck of a challenge for our team,” he said last Monday. “But this is why you come to Texas, to play in games like this.”

The players had something of a ho-hum attitude toward the game. It felt like Iowa State week or Kansas State week, considering how they spoke about the opponent. Sure, it was a big game. But they’re all supposed to be big at Texas, right?

Then Sarkisian’s comments Thursday sealed the deal.

“There's something that I kind of relish being the villain,” Sarkisian told Texas reporters on Thursday. “I kind of like going in there thinking, man, there’s 100 versus 120,000 and we’re the villain, and it’s okay being the villain.”

Remember, most coaches are talking to their players when they’re talking to reporters. Coaches want the players to read stories, see social media posts and hear what they are saying publicly, so it spreads into the locker room.

This was a coach speaking with such confidence, the players had to feel there was no way they were going to Michigan and losing. Center Jake Majors said after the win that “these are the games you dream of playing in.”

“You know, when you were a kid, you watch these games, you’re like I can't wait to be there,” Majors said. “One day, I told (my teammates), just take a second enjoy this. You know, don't forget how we got here, through hard work.”

The 2024 journey is only getting started.