Texas head coach Steve Sarkisian thought about leaving for Alabama following Nick Saban's retirement.

But not for very long.

"Naturally, I'd be lying if I said I didn't think about it," Sarkisian said Wednesday, per ESPN's Chris Low. "But it took me all of about 60 seconds to say, 'Yeah, I'm not doing that.' I had an awesome two years at Alabama and loved my time under Coach Saban, but ultimately you want to reap what you sow.

"We've poured a ton into this program for three years, and we're on the cusp, I think, of going on a run that will be epic. I believe that. Our staff does, and our players do, too, just the support we have and the culture we've created here. Why leave something like that?"

There was an obvious connection in place, as Sarkisian was the offensive coordinator for the Crimson Tide during the two seasons prior to taking the Texas job. He worked under Saban, is familiar with the program and helped guide the team to the College Football Playoff national championship during the 2020 campaign.

However, it was clearly too difficult to walk away from what he is building at Texas.

After going just 5-7 in his first season in 2021, the Longhorns improved to 8-5 in his second season and 12-2 in his third. They won the Big 12 championship and reached the CFP last season, which marked impressive improvement even though they lost to Washington in the semifinals.

Oh, and they also defeated Alabama in September.

Sarkisian will need to replace some top-level talent, as Low noted a program-best 11 players were invited to the NFL Scouting Combine this year. Still, quarterback Quinn Ewers is back, and the head coach landed a number of notable transfers.

One of those transfers was Alabama wide receiver Isaiah Bond who, like Sarkisian, chose Texas over the Crimson Tide.

There is also something to be said about the pressure of following Saban, who is arguably the greatest coach in college football history. All he did was win six national championships with Alabama and establish the program as the gold standard of the sport, so there will likely be some regression even if new coach Kalen DeBoer keeps things rolling.

For now, Sarkisian is carving out his own legacy with Texas and will be expected to contend for the expanded 12-team CFP during the upcoming campaign.

Perhaps he'll even face Alabama if he gets there.