In the dark DT VOLUME 121, ISSUE 48 TUESDAY, FEB. 23, 2021
Inclement weather left students scrambling to find resources and information as they lost power, water and WiFi.
evan l’roy
/ the daily texan staff
PERMANENT STAFF Editor-in-Chief Emily Caldwell Managing Editor Trinady Joslin Assoc. Managing Editors Emily Hernandez, Ariana Arredondo Director of Digital Strategy Hal Riley Director of Diversity & Inclusion Areeba Amer Internal Relations Director Sanika Nayak External Relations Director Abhirupa Dasgupta Assoc. Opinion Editors Isabelle Costello, Hannah Lopez, Julia Zaksek
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AUSTIN WEATHER TODAY FEB. 23
HI LO
79º 57º
TOMORROW FEB. 24
HI LO
75º 52º
i feel like we really are our slack avatars
CONTACT US MAIN TELEPHONE
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UT resources are available for students affected by power and water outages.
Sports
page
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Students faced flooded apartments and power outages during last week’s winter storm.
News
page
page
Cover
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New Texas head coach Steve Sarkisian is set to sign a lucrative six-year contract.
STATE
Students eligible for statewide rental assistance By Ana Goodwin @Goodnasti
Assoc. Design Editor Megan Fletcher
Assoc. Video Editor Jackson Barton
News Editor Lauren Girgis
04
Professors must push deadlines back to give students time to recover from the winter storm.
Senior Sports Writers Matthew Boncosky, Taylor Hawthorne
Forum Editors Daisy Kielty, Maria Sailale
Editorial Illustrator Charlie Hyman
Opinion
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DT
Contents:
Eligible Texans can apply for rent assistance for past-due bills dating as far back as March 13, 2020, and receive assistance for three months of future rent and utility bills, a Texas Department of Housing and Community Affairs spokesperson said. The application for the first statewide rental relief program in Texas opened Feb. 14 and will continue until funds run
out, said Kristina Tirloni, a spokeswoman of the department. The federal government gave over $1 billion to the Texas Rent Relief Program to assist Texans with rent, according to a press release from Gov. Greg Abbott. Students will have to make 80% or below the Austin Metropolitan Statistical area’s median income of $97,600. For students with a household size of one, that’s less than $54,700 per year. Additionally, one or more people in their house-
hold must qualify for unemployment or show proof of income loss or financial hardship due to COVID-19. Lastly, students must provide evidence they are at risk of experiencing homelessness through an eviction notice or unpaid utility bills, according to the program’s website. Students 18 years or older whose names appear on their lease could be eligible for the program, even if parents claim them as dependents, Tirloni said in an email.
The program will prioritize distributing funds to applicants at or below 50% of their Area Median Income until Feb. 28, Tirloni said. Then, funds will be distributed according to the order in which applications were accepted. Though the application can be filled out online, Tirloni said the department’s call center has also been staffed to receive a large number of calls and is equipped with translators for over 250 languages to assist applicants. Jessica Meza, UT alumna and rent strike organizer for the United Neighborhood Defense Movement, said rental assistance programs do not do enough to address the rent crisis in Austin because residents might not have documentation proving they qualify. Evictions in Travis County have remained low during the pandemic due to the eviction moratorium, said Marissa Latta, a housing attorney for Texas RioGrande Legal Aid. The 78705 ZIP code, which encompasses West Campus, had 40 evictions filed since the start of 2020, down 80% from the average number in the previous 5 years, according to Princeton University’s Eviction Lab. Latta said a wave of evictions is likely to come once the city lifts the eviction moratorium, but she believes that the program will help many at-risk residents in the area. “I think it’s a welcome opportunity (for) tenants who have been doing everything they can to find rental assistance,” Latta said.
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EDITOR-IN-CHIEF
Emily Caldwell (512) 232-2212 editor@dailytexanonline.com
MANAGING EDITOR
Trinady Joslin (512) 232-2217 managingeditor@thedailytexan.com
NEWS OFFICE
(512) 232-2207 news@thedailytexan.com The Texan strives to present all information fairly, accurately and completely. If we have made an error, let us know about it. E-mail managingeditor@thedailytexan.com.
NEWS
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TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 23, 2021
STATE
How students can use SNAP after winter storm By Samantha Greyson @GreysonSamantha
Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, or SNAP, recipients can now apply to receive replacement benefits for food lost or damaged in the winter storm, according to Gov. Greg Abbott’s Feb. 19 press release. SNAP is a federal program that supplements the food needs of low-income people through monthly electronic debit cards, which can be used to buy groceries. Texas Health and Human Services received federal approval for the replacement of SNAP benefits lost in the winter storm Friday, according to the press release. Those eligible can apply for replacement benefits by calling the 2-1-1 line, according to the press release. “I thank our federal partners for swiftly approving SNAP benefit replacements for food lost or destroyed in the wake of this winter weather disaster,” Abbott said in the press release. In January, SNAP temporarily extended its eligibility due to COVID-19 to include more college students, including those with an expected family contribution of $0 for this academic year. Previously,
college students were eligible for SNAP if they participated in work study. Now, students who qualify for work study but do not participate can still receive aid, according to the United States Department of Agriculture website. The USDA implemented this change through The Consolidated Appropriations Act of 2021. The temporary terms will expire 30 days after the federal government lifts the COVID-19 public health emergency, according to the USDA website. “It’s difficult for college students right now to be getting these jobs under work study,” professor of pediatrics Steven Abrams said. “The benefit to UT students is they don’t have to necessarily be holding a position right now in the work study program.” SNAP benefits can help with long-term food insecurity, as opposed to a food pantry, which serves more short-term needs, Abrams said. The average SNAP recipient received about $1.39 per meal in 2018, according to the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities. Abrams said this extra cash can also help students and their families if the student is currently living at home. “There are quite a few
students who are eligible for it who won’t know about it,” Abrams said. “Students should take advantage of it and not feel like, ‘Oh gosh, why am I — as a college student — having to take food stamps.’” Raj Patel, a research professor at the LBJ School of Public Affairs, said more students are struggling with food insecurity and unemployment due to the pandemic. He said many students’ food insecurity goes unnoticed and forgotten. “It was one of the most heart stopping moments of my teaching career when I heard from students that, ‘Yeah, obviously we skip meals because we can’t afford them,’” Patel said. “At some level, I knew that there were students doing that. But to have some of my students who I was in the orbit of confess to it and just shrug it off was, I mean, it just took my breath away.” Megan Gray, an assistant professor of pediatrics, said students may be hesitant to use SNAP due to the negative stigma around food stamps, but it is an important resource. “I think any amount of help for food insecurity is a positive thing right now,” Gray said. “Hopefully normalizing this and making it more available can only be a positive thing for students.”
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E M I LY C A L D W E L L
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Editor-In-Chief | @TEXANOPINION TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 23, 2021
EDITORIAL
OPINION
Give students more time
Professors should push deadlines back a week to let students recover from last week’s storm. By The Daily Texan Editorial Board
ere in the opinion department at The Daily Texan, we rarely comment on state or national issues. We focus on UT and how we can push for change here on campus. But in a disaster such as the recent winter storm that left millions of Texans without power and water and experiencing catastrophic damage, death and destruction due to the collapse of critical infrastructure during a winter storm, UT students are unavoidably affected. Our community has been crippled by incompetence at the state level, and we’re angry. Students are struggling to GALLERY
charlie hyman
recover from a week without reliable sources of power, heat, internet, food and clean water, which some are still without. Needless to say, many students are not using the fragile access to power they do have to prepare for classes this week, which are set to resume this Wednesday. One member of the editorial board was without power from 2 a.m. Monday morning until 5 a.m. Thursday morning. She and her three roommates slept two to a bed, four in a room, bundled in hats and coats as the temperature inside dropped to the low forties at night. They dared to drive to a friend’s place with power a mile away on Wednesday, crawling down the icy streets. When they came back, fire trucks lined the street because a neighbor’s gas line had broken. The member cried — worried about their neighbors who could only check in through Facebook every few hours, worried about a third freezing night and worried the power would never turn back on. Another member of the board had the pipes burst in her building at 2 a.m. Tuesday and had to evacuate. She stood with her cat in the rain for 30 minutes in 20-degree weather before being allowed back inside. The entire first floor of the building
/ the daily texan staff
LEGALESE | Opinions expressed in The Daily Texan are those of the editor, the Editorial Board or the writer of the article. They are not necessarily those of the UT administration, the Board of Regents or the Texas Student Media Board of Operating Trustees.
was flooded. She had to make a nest of blankets to raise her and her pet’s body temperature. A couple days later, the member lost water. She had to rely on the generosity of her friends and community to access boiled water. That was the same day she ran out of food. Another member started the week with a fall down the icy steps of her dorm, as the ground wasn’t salted until later in the day. A few days later, as the member went to turn on her shower, she noticed the pressure of the water had dropped significantly. She anticipated the loss of water that many peers were reporting and began to fill containers — a good preparation, until the boil water notice arrived. Hot plates and kettles aren’t allowed in her dorm, so she transferred each container into her single cereal bowl and hoped the microwave would be hot enough. The only working toilets in her area were on the ground floor of her dorm, so she anxiously waited her turn as a large crowd gathered outside. Members of the UT and broader Austin community came together to support students. Students volunteered at warming centers, distributed information, organized supply drives, drove to pick up people in need and deliver donations. Neighbors checked on each other and opened their homes. This support allowed students to survive the week. Class was, and still is, the last thing on anyone’s mind.
SUBMIT A FIRING LINE | Email your Firing Lines to editor@dailytexanonline.com. Letters must be more than 100 and fewer than 300 words. The Texan reserves the right to edit all submissions for brevity, clarity and liability.
juwon yoo
Professors, if you haven’t already, push your assignments and deadlines back at least a week. We understand learning needs to continue, but these are abnormal circumstances. In his Feb. 19 email, even UT President Jay Hartzell encouraged professors to consider delaying due dates for major exams or assignments this week. “We need to prepare for a
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time of transition. Students will be coming back from serious adversity,” Hartzell said. The consequences of the winter storm didn’t end once the sun came back out and temperatures started to rise. Push deadlines back so students can focus on keeping themselves and their loved ones safe right now. Give students the time they need to recover.
EDITORIAL TWITTER | Follow The Daily Texan Editorial Board on Twitter (@TexanOpinion) and receive updates on our latest editorials and columns.
LIFE&ARTS
A I S L I N G AY E R S
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Life&Arts Editor | @TEXANARTS TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 23, 2021
FEATURE
‘Okay, this is how I can help’ UT staff and students provide food for Austin community through winter storm.
By Jenny Errico @errico_jenny
n the morning of Feb. 17, Jester 2nd Floor Dining and Kinsolving Dining Hall faced a pizza, scrambled egg and burger shortage. When Mynor Rivera heard the news, he hopped in his pickup truck and drove 35 miles to a Housing and Dining warehouse in Buda, Texas. “I wanted to make sure we didn’t run out of the students’ favorites,” said Rivera, Director of Dining Operations. “During these times you want comfort food, so I wanted to ensure we had enough. I didn’t want anyone to be disappointed.” Rivera said he and his coworker, Colin Scott, piled 150 cases of food into the back of Rivera’s truck, supplying J2 and Kinsolving with enough food to last through the night. The next morning, Feb. 18, a delivery truck dropped off 1,500 cases of food for the rest of the week. Last week’s historic winter storm touched all 254 Texas counties, leaving over 4 million households without power for days and almost
half the population with water infrastructure problems. During the height of the winter storm, UT staff and students found ways to provide food to the Austin community despite freezing temperatures. “I (have) lived in Chicago, Boston, New York and Michigan so I’m used to driving and living in this type of weather,” Rivera said. “Most students aren’t, so my main goal was trying to make them happy and comfortable during a time of crisis.” Rivera said around 1,600 students ate at J2 for each meal during the storm. Economics senior Vincent Duong was one of these students. He didn’t have power for five days in his West Campus apartment and still has limited water pressure. Duong said he spent last week walking through the snow and ice to friends’ apartments for food and warmth. He went to J2 on Tuesday and Wednesday for dinner, eating four plates of food and taking two containers to go. “When you’re starving, you just want all-you-can-eat food, so I’m so thankful they decided to open up J2 and Kins,” Duong said. “The quantity of food literally saved me.”
copyright anthony rodriquez, and reproduced with permission
Antony Rodriquez and others with pizza bought for students during the snowstorm. He said he wanted to provide alternative food options for students, and walked 11 miles with his roommates in below freezing temperatures to find food to distribute.
On Feb. 18, nutrition junior Antony Rodriguez saw crowds of hungry students lined up to get the free pancakes JP’s Pancake Company food truck was giving out. Rodriguez said seeing the amount of people lined up inspired him to do what he could do to help. He said he wanted to provide alternative food options for students and walked 11 miles with his roommates in below freezing temperatures to find food to distribute. They ended up buying and delivering 10 Domino’s pizzas for lunch and 26 packs of fried rice for dinner to students at the Texas Union. “I felt bad for students who were really struggling because I wasn’t as impacted (by the
storm),” Rodriguez said. “After seeing the need for food among students, I thought, ‘Okay, this is how I can help.’” Rodriguez and his roommates continued to provide food to students and people experiencing homelessness over the weekend with their own funds and donations from friends and strangers on social media. In total, they bought 700 chicken tenders from Canes, 5 trays of fries, 28 boxes of fried rice and 63 boxes of pizza. “One light at the end of the tunnel is seeing how willing people are to help the community,” Duong said. “I know I wouldn’t have been able to get through this if it wasn’t for the help of others. I’m truly grateful.”
L A U R E N G I R G I S , A I S L I N G AY E R S
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News Editor , Life&Arts Editor | @THEDAILYTEXAN
TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 23, 2021
COVER STORY
LABELHEAD FEATURE
Surviving the storm By Fiza Kuzhiyil & Skye Seipp
@fiza11k @seippetc
The power in Sofía Velasco’s Riverside apartment went out Sunday. She wouldn’t have it again for 68 hours. As her options for food and warmth dwindled, she ate unboiled ramen and sat in her car to keep warm and charge her phone. She said it was so cold inside her apartment, she could see her breath. “It kind of got terrifying, thinking about how I’m going to get food, and thinking about having more cold nights,” economics junior Velasco said. Velasco is one of the thousands of students and Austinites who suffered after the Electric Reliability Council of Texas called for rotating power outages that ended up being not so rotational, as millions of Texans were without electricity for days. Here are their stories:
julius sheih
/ the daily texan staff
Government freshman Rhys Wilkinson walks down E 24th Street as snow begins to fall Sunday evening.
Sofía Velasco: Ran out of options in Riverside In response to the severe winter weather, UT canceled all classes for the week, helped some students find emergency housing and provided other resources for students. But for students in Riverside like Velasco, University spokesperson J.B. Bird said there wasn’t much the University could do. On Tuesday evening, Velasco
emailed and called Student Emergency Services to get housing and told them she was running out of food. When she finally received a response Wednesday afternoon, she was told that no individual rooms were available, but that she could take advantage of warming centers at the Texas Union and Gregory Gym or throughout the city.
She was also redirected to Jester 2nd Floor Dining and Kinsolving Dining Hall to get food. Later Wednesday evening, she received an email that Student Emergency Services was going to deposit $50 in her bank account for groceries. They said that deposit would take 3-5 days and Velasco said she received a $100 deposit Monday.
On Wednesday night, Velasco’s power came back on. But after almost a week of not being able to work at her job at H-E-B, Velasco is still worried about the financial fallout the storm could cause. “I’m worried about how I’m going to pay rent without a week’s paycheck,” Velasco said. “It’s a lot (to deal with).”
I’m worried about how I’m going to pay rent without a week’s paycheck. It’s a lot (to deal with).” SOFIA VELASCO
economics junior
7 Joanne Navales: So cold she could see her breath On the morning of Feb. 15, public health freshman Joanne Navales lost power at her West Campus apartment. She said she was still awake when it happened, and the power went off and on every 15 minutes until it finally went off for good. Navales said she and her three roommates all bundled up and slept together in the living room Feb. 15 with just a
battery-powered string of lights. She said the temperature in her apartment wasn’t bad at first, but by the time she left Wednesday to travel to her emergency housing, it was 40 degrees inside. Student Emergency Services placed Navales at 2400 Nueces on Wednesday. Even with housing, Navales said she isn’t in a state of mind to study.
“The situation is somewhat traumatizing,” Navales said. “I’ve never been on my own this much and I just moved to Austin this semester. … I’m barely learning how to take care of myself already, and then the fact that this hit in the middle of a pandemic — in the middle of my first year — it’s kind of shaken me up a bit, and I can’t really focus on school.”
Everyone was so excited, like, ‘Oh, we got snow in Texas. This is gonna be amazing.’ And then suddenly, everybody doesn’t have power or water.” MELINA OLIVAS
government freshman
Melina Olivas: An inch of water in her home At 4 a.m. on Wednesday, government freshman Melina Olivas was woken up by the blaring of her apartment’s fire alarm. Olivas expected a false alarm, but when she opened her front door, water began rushing in from the hallway. Olivas and her boyfriend took turns sweeping the water away from their front door until they couldn’t keep up. Eventually their apartment, St Johns West, was filled with over an inch of water. “Everyone was so excited, like, ‘Oh, we got snow in Texas. This is gonna be amazing.’ And then suddenly, everybody doesn’t have power or water,” Olivas said. In the aftermath of a winter storm that left millions of Texans without power in freezing temperatures, students now find their housing significantly affected. Some students’ housing flooded and others fled freezing homes
to find shelter in emergency housing. Olivas said the water leak came from a burst pipe on her floor. She said emergency services such as 911 and 311 were overwhelmed by similar concerns and couldn’t immediately assist them. “We had to move everything really fast to get all our electronics and mattress and stuff up high,” Olivas said. Olivas said her neighbor eventually vacuumed the water out, but not before it had already seeped into the walls. She said her building’s maintenance staff took out the damaged parts of her drywall Friday, leaving holes for the foreseeable future. “It’s been really stressful,” Olivas said. “Finally all the water’s out, but now I have to deal with all this drywall all over my floor, and my couch is in the middle of the kitchen.”
jack myer
/ the daily texan staff
A car stops for a passenger to get in Feb. 19 in the garage of the Orange Tree Condominiums.
Fazal Ali: Slept in his car for warmth and distance from COVID-19 exposure After the power went out in his North Austin apartment, computer science junior Fazal Ali said he used a meat thermometer to test the indoor temperature. After 15 hours without power, the thermometer read 38 degrees. “I realized that I had to get out of this place before I froze to death,”
Ali said. “It was basically like survivor mode, and the only things I was worrying about (were) the essentials: water, food and shelter.” Ali said he fled to the Texas Union, but he was worried about being exposed to COVID-19 due to a pre-existing condition that makes him more susceptible to
the virus. He was supposed to get the second dose of the vaccine Wednesday, but it was delayed due to the inclement weather. He said students at the Union tried to maintain social distancing, but he decided to play it safe and sleep in his car for several hours. “My car was the saving grace
because it had heat,” Ali said. “I could charge my phone, and worst comes to worst, I could sleep there. I had never been so grateful for my car before.” Once he charged his phone, Ali said he was able to call his parents who live in India to let them know he was safe. He said he also
reached out to his neighbors to offer them help. “I am actually very proud of being in Texas at the moment,” Ali said. “I have never seen a whole community — a whole state — come together like this. … It’s incredibly good to see that even in the worst of times, people can be their best.”
JACK MYER
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Photo Editor | @TEXAN_JPG
TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 23, 2021
GALLERY
PHOTO
Through the Texan’s lens: winter storm hannah clark
/ the daily texan staff
Students line up Feb. 15 outside Target on Guadalupe Street to stock up on goods in preparation for the coming days.
jack myer
/ the daily texan staff
The drive-thru line for the Whataburger on Guadalupe Street stretched down the block when it reopened Feb. 18.
connor downs
/ the daily texan staff
Undeclared freshman Stephanie Laynez makes her mark on some of the freshly fallen snow beside Littlefield Fountain on Feb. 14.
ashley miznazi
AJ Fernandez walks his husky, Marshmallow, on the East Mall on Feb. 16.
/ the daily texan staff
jack myer
/ the daily texan staff
As the snow melted, West Campus residents crossed Rio Grande Street on Feb. 19.
NEWS
LAUREN GIRGIS
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News Editor | @THEDAILYTEXAN TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 23, 2021
CAMPUS
Winter storm resources
Here’s what food, health, funding and personal care resources are still available to students. By Kevin Vu, Sheryl Lawrence, Skye Seipp, Tori Duff, Lauren Abel and Samantha Greyson
espite this week’s higher temperatures, Austin is still reeling from the effects of last week’s inclement weather, which caused widespread power and water outages. The Daily Texan has compiled a list of resources and information for students looking for water, food, health services, emergency funding and personal care access. Water on Campus The University will provide bottled water to students who visit the dining halls, University spokesperson J.B. Bird said Thursday. Erich Geiger, senior director of Dining and Catering, Geiger said the front desks of the residence halls also have water available for students living there. Food on Campus Kinsolving Dining Hall and Jester 2nd Floor Dining will be open Tuesday from 8 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. and 4:30 to 8 p.m. Both are expected to be open for regular hours of operations Wednesday. Limited meal options are available at both locations, according to the University Housing and Dining website. Cypress Bend Market will be open from 11 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., and Jesta’ Pizza will be open from 2 p.m. to midnight. Beginning Wednesday, both are expected to be open for regular hours of operations. Kins Market and Jester City Market will be closed Tuesday and open for regular hours Wednesday. Jester Java and Kins Coffee will also be closed, and their opening date has not been determined. Cynthia Lew, director of marketing and communications for UHD, said that cash is currently not being accepted at dining halls, but students can pay by debit card, credit card or Bevo Pay at all facilities. Lew said that all normal dining hall staffers have been able to return to their posts, and food at dining halls is well stocked.
“We’re back to our regular (food delivery) schedule — it restarted today — so food is not a problem,” Lew said. Sara Kennedy, director of strategic and executive communications for the Office of the Dean of Students, said that she is unsure when UT Outpost will be open for food distribution, but they are expecting a food shipment Tuesday. For updates on UT Outpost hours, students can check the Office of the Dean of Students website. “We are anticipating being able to provide additional food support to our student community as soon as those deliveries are received and we’re able to open up reservations,” Kennedy said. Personal Care Students can shower at Gregory Gym from 10 a.m. to 8 p.m. and those who live in residence halls or emergency housing can use the residence hall showers. Health Services According to the Counseling and Mental Health Center website, telehealth appointments will be available for students Tuesday at 8 a.m. There will be no staff presence on site and no private offices for telehealth appointments available Monday or Tuesday. To schedule an appointment or if a student is experiencing a crisis, students can call 512-471-3515 during business hours. Students can call the CMHC Crisis Line at 512-471-2255 for assistance after hours. Susan Hochman, associate director for assessment, communications and health information technology, said University Health Services is open during regular business hours for both in-person and telehealth appointments, including testing for students who have symptoms of COVID-19. To make an appointment with University Health Services, students can schedule online or call 512-4714955. For after hours assistance, the Nurse Advice Line at 512-475-6877 is open 24 hours, 365 days a year, Hochman said.
Proactive Community Testing resumed Monday, and appointments can be scheduled on University Health Services’ website. Testing is guaranteed only for those with appointments. COVID-19 vaccinations resumed at Gregory Gym, according to the UT Health Austin website. Those who have appointments this week can arrive at their original date and time. Those who had canceled appointments scheduled between Feb. 15 and Feb. 19 can arrive to receive their vaccine during a time period determined by the first letter of their last name, found on the UTHA website. Emergency Funding
Students can apply for emergency funds — that don’t have to be repaid — through Student Emergency Services, said Kennedy. The amount each student receives varies by person. The University gave out $17,000 in emergency funding last week, she said. Students can also apply for an emergency cash loan of up to $500 that has to be repaid within 30 days and has an interest rate of 0%. Students making tuition installment payments will not be charged for late fees on the second installment that was due Feb. 19, said Joey Williams, director of communications for the Office of the Executive Vice President and Provost. Late fees will now begin March 1.
C A R T E R YAT E S
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Sports Editor | @TEXANSPORTS
TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 23, 2021
FOOTBALL
SPORTS
Sarkisian to sign lucrative deal The new Texas head football coach is guaranteed $34.2 million over a six-year span. By Carter Yates @Carter_Yates16
ust over a month after spending a whopping $24 million to buy former football head coach Tom Herman and his coaching staff out of their contracts, Texas is
guaranteeing new head coach Steve Sarkisian a lucrative new agreement, according to a meeting agenda released by the UT System Board of Regents on Friday night. Sarkisian, who spent the past two seasons as Alabama’s offensive coordinator and won the Broyles Award for the nation’s top assistant coach, is set to sign a six-year contract with $34.2 million in guaranteed money, according to the meeting agenda. The first-year head coach is set to make $5.2 million in 2021 with an annual $200,000 raise. The contract is longer and guarantees more than the initial contracts of former Texas head coaches Tom Herman and Charlie Strong. No University money will be used toward Sarkisian’s contract because Texas Athletics operates as a self-sustaining arm and generates revenue for
the University, according to the Athletics Spending page on the University of Texas website. This means that budget cuts that the University has taken on due to COVID-19 protocols are not being used for Sarkisian’s contract. Joel Lulla, a lecturer at the Stan Richards School of Advertising and Public Relations, said the exorbitant amount of money is a direct result of the revenue the football program brings in. “Clearly, it’s hard to justify a college football coach making $6 million a year in terms of what teachers make and what firemen make and what police make,” Lulla said. “But there’s a market for it, and The University of Texas football program is, as an approximate number, a $150 million-ayear business.” While Sarkisian’s contract is longer with more guaranteed money than Herman or Strong’s, the annual salary will be less in Sarkisian’s first season at the helm than
Herman made in 2020. Herman earned just over $5.8 million in his final season at Texas, which was revealed when UT Athletic Director Chris Del Conte announced his voluntary pay decrease due to COVID-19 in September 2020. The meeting agenda detailed that three of Sarkisian’s assistant coaches, offensive coordinator Kyle Flood, defensive coordinator Pete Kwiatkowski and special teams coordinator and tight end coach Jeff Banks will each receive over $1 million annually. Even though Steve Sarkisian himself is not making more money in 2021 than Tom Herman made in his final season at the helm, Sarkisian’s assistant coaches will be reeling in higher salaries than Herman’s. Herman only had one assistant coach, offensive coordinator Mike Yurchich, making over $1 million a year, according to The University of Texas Board of Regents approval in February 2020. While Lulla believes Texas
courtesy of texas athletics
Steve Sarkisian speaks to the media at his first official press conference as the Texas head football coach Jan. 12.
paid the market price for Sarkisian, he said the supposed “pay cuts” that the Athletics Department asked nearly all of their coaches to take in 2020 were a farce. The 15% salary reduction Herman took before the 2020 season from his base salary of $3.5 million, which did not include the additional $2.5 million for media appearances, was paid back to him when Texas bought out
his contract, according to a joint investigation by the Austin American-Statesman and USA Today. “From a distance, that seemed like a cynical optic’s ploy to say, ‘Oh, we’re in a pandemic, everyone’s sacrificing,’ when in fact the coaches weren’t sacrificing at all other than getting their salary deferred to end the end of their contract,” Lulla said. For Texas, the ends justify the means. With multiple high-profile decommitments in the 2022 recruiting class and a restless fan base angered by mediocre results on the field, Texas Athletics risked hurting their bottom line once fans were likely allowed to return at full capacity in 2021, Lulla said. But history suggests the lengthy contract may not be the right move for Texas. “The long-term contracts are always an issue because, frankly, they don’t really work out,” Lulla said. “Mack Brown was bought out, Charlie Strong was bought out of his last two years and Herman megan fletcher / the daily texan staff was bought out.”
COMICS
B A R B D A LY & R O C K Y H I G I N E
Comics Editors | @TEXANCOMICS TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 23, 2021
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SPORTS
FEATURE
Texas Athletics, student-athletes adjust after winter storm, postponements By Nathan Han @NathanHan13
Last Thursday, when several Texas teams returned to practice for the first day after the winter storms, volleyball sophomore Skylar Fields posted a TikTok with the caption, “When you have practice but no running water to shower.” Fields’ TikTok was just one small glimpse into the conditions Texas student-athletes, like many Texans, faced over the past week dealing with the winter storm. “It’s been a trying week,” said Vic Schaefer, women’s basketball head coach, following the team’s win against Kansas State on Sunday. “What our student-athletes went through this past week — we don’t have any idea what their families have been through, especially Texas kids. It’s a real challenge.” Volleyball hasn’t kicked off its season yet, but softball had its first 12 games canceled due to inclement weather, including the kickoff Texas Classic with matchups against No. 3 Arizona and No. 8 Alabama. And for the women’s and men’s basketball teams nearing the final stretch of the season, the break only added to a year full of pauses. The Texas men’s basketball team
was finally hitting the meat of its Big 12 schedule with a full roster after COVID-19 related setbacks, with three games in six days, starting with a Tuesday road game against Oklahoma. Then, the Red River Rivalry matchup was pushed back to Wednesday. Then “tentatively” moved to Thursday, until that game, along with last Thursday’s matchup against Iowa State, was added to a growing list of postponements. “We’re basically just told what to do. In that case, we’re courtesy of texas athletics going to OklahoTexas women’s basketball coach Vic Schaefer calls his team together before a game against Oklahoma ma until we’re not,” State on Feb. 10. Schaefer and the rest of Texas Athletics’ spring sports were rocked with cancellations and postponements last week due to a winter storm. said Shaka Smart, men’s basketball practice “definitely makes don’t stop” for many of days? Is he fully recovered head coach. a difference with pitchers Texas’ student-athletes. from having COVID?’” But, as Smart reiterated, being sharp and timing.” “I’m proud of these guys, When teams did return basketball was far down the to practice Thursday and The team only had a “very you know, how they’ve list for not only the players, dealt with everything, and then to organized compe- short workout” Thursday but also the coaching staff and before playing three top 10 how they’ve been resilient,” tition this weekend, it was support staff after the storm SEC opponents. Smart said. clear that the pause had intensified Sunday. Schaefer’s squad reboundSchaefer compounded “Today in practice, I’m an effect on conditioning ed from a slow start against Smart’s testament to the and performance. getting on one of our guys,” Kansas State to collect a Texas student-athletes’ fight Baseball head coach DaSmart said Feb. 19. “I’m all win after he said it felt like during the winter storm and vid Pierce said there were over this guy. And then in the his teams’ lungs were “padCOVID-19 protocols. back of my mind, I’m think- “no excuses” for his squad’s locked” in its first practice “It’s hard to do what these ing to myself, ‘Man, what struggles in the opening back Thursday. kids are doing,” Schaefer weekend tournament in is he going through off the As Fields posted in said. “I’m proud of them. It’s court? What has his family Globe Life Park in Arlington, her TikTok, “the grind really a challenge.” but also said that the lack of endured in the past several