The University of Texas at Austin Athletics
Casey Hampton spoke with Coach Sark about the impact of “big humans”
11.13.2023 | Football
Texas Athletics Hall of Honor member and College and Pro Football Hall of Fame nominee Casey Hampton joined “Longhorn Weekly with Coach Sark”
By Will Dehmel
Head coach Steve Sarkisian made headlines at the 2022 Big 12 media days when he explained his priority to recruit "big humans." On this week's "Longhorn Weekly with Coach Sark," Sarkisian got to visit by phone with one of the players who epitomized that phrase.
"I've always admired you from afar and your time here on the Forty Acres and then, obviously, your time with the Steelers," Sarkisian said to guest and former Longhorn defensive tackle Casey Hampton. "When I got here, I made this pitch that teams win football games up front.
"The best teams I've ever been part of were great up front on the offensive and defensive lines. And we said we're gonna hire the best O- and D-Line coaches in the country, and we're gonna recruit the biggest, baddest dudes out there to get as close to playing like you."
Much like the "Steel Curtain" defenses and dominant Texas units Hampton was a part of, the Longhorns have been stellar up front this year. Through 10 games, UT ranks eighth nationally in rushing defense, holding opponents to just 90 yards per game. The Horns also are mighty stingy in the red zone, ranking third nationally in limiting challengers to scores just 67 percent of the time inside the 20, while its third-down defense is second in the FBS (26.5%).
Hampton did similar things for the Texas defense when he was a Longhorn from 1996 to 2000. Anchoring the Texas defensive line with teammate Shaun Rogers for three years, Hampton helped guide Texas to the first-ever Big 12 Championship in 1996 and a victory at the 1998 Cotton Bowl victory.
Echoing Sarkisian's philosophy, Hampton explained that he got better because of the huge guys he played with and against.
"I was more of an underrated guy compared to the other guys that came in with me," Hampton, who was the 2000 Big 12 Defensive Player of the Year and two-time Super Bowl champion, says now. "We had a big offensive lineman by the name of Dan Neil (a two-time All-American and 1996 Outland Trophy finalist). Going against guys like that on the offensive line every single day — and going out there and competing with guys like Shaun Rogers every single day ... There was always competition between us. We always tried to beat each other at everything we did."
When Mack Brown arrived as head coach in 1998, he looked to the linemen to set the tone for the rest of the team. Sarkisian, who began as head coach in 2021, says he did the same thing.
"When I got here, T'Vondre Sweat was already on the roster … and there was a young guy who was not the most highly recruited guy by the name of Bryon Murphy, who came in with my first class," Sarkisian explained. "We had some good ones like Keondre (Coburn) and Moro (Ojomo) the first two years, and now T-Sweat and Murph have become the leaders of the team. What's even cooler is they're setting the pace and showing the ropes to the younger guys so they're ready when their turn comes."
"As a head coach, you're trying to build a team on physicality and toughness and stopping the run, and then the locker room. I know how important these guys are for us now, not only the way they play on Saturday, but who they are in the locker room."
Then Sarkisian asked what Hampton and his fellow defensive linemen did to impact Coach Brown and build a championship culture.
"We were all physical guys," Hampton said. "That was just our nature — getting after people. We always wanted to impose our will. When Mack came in and brought that mentality that we already had, we fed it to the whole team. We were going to show these guys how to work. We're going to outwork everybody. And that was the mentality of us as a defensive line. We took pride in being the leaders and being the guys that everybody followed."
Once Hampton and Rogers left Texas for a combined 25 seasons in the NFL, it was professional players that were looking up to them. On the radio show, host Roger Wallace shared a photo of Hampton, Rogers and All-American offensive lineman Leonard Davis, who himself played 12 years in the NFL. Wallace then asked what Hampton remembered about taking it a few years ago.
In this week's edition of Longhorn Weekly with Coach Sark we had a chance to visit with Longhorn Legend Casey Hampton about this iconic photo, his MVP portrait, and so much more. You can catch the interview tonight at 7 p.m. CT on the Longhorn Radio Network and @LonghornNetwork🤘🏼 pic.twitter.com/JkOnsulcNj
— John Bianco (@UT_Bianco) November 9, 2023
"A few years ago?!" Hampton shot back. "That was a long, long time ago. But I definitely remember taking that picture. I remember having a laugh and a really, really good time. Those guys are a lot taller than me, but in the picture we all look the same size. So, I had to go find a few phone books so we could all look the same size."
Standing at 6'1," Hampton doesn't think of himself as huge. But Coach Sark does — literally and figuratively.
Sarkisian explained that the Texas football facility has portraits of every team MVP. And which one is right outside his office door?
"I see your portrait, and what an honor to be voted a team MVP by your teammates," Sarkisian said. "It speaks volumes to not only the player you were, but the leader you were as well. That's such an awesome, and well-earned and deserved, legacy."
Hampton has had many honors in his career. He was enshrined into the Texas Athletics Hall of Honor in 2014, was a five-time NFL Pro Bowl selection, and was named as a member of the Steelers' highly prestigious 75th Anniversary team in 2007. He is currently a nominee for the College Football and Pro Football Halls of Fame.
Speaking on his career, Hampton is humble about all the successes, crediting the big humans he played alongside that now, a quarter century later, Sarkisian is modeling his program after.
"It's a tribute to all the hard work me and those guys put in," Hampton said. "We worked our tails off, and it paid off for us. It shows what hard work and dedication can get you."
Sarkisian echoed the importance of having guys like Hampton around as great examples of what the young Longhorns aspire to be.
"You're always welcome here," Sarkisian told Hampton before he signed off. "Our doors are always open. You inspire all of us. I know our defensive line looks up to you and what you guys were able to do back then. That's the type of program we're trying to build. We want to dominate up front, and that's how you win."
