Everyone wants to know what’s going on with Xavier Worthy, so let’s start there.
Before we get to whether Worthy is staying or going, it’s important to try to understand Worthy - his approach to football, how seriously he takes it, how hard he works at it and that he’s not been your typical college football player from the day he set foot on campus last year as a freshman.
When Worthy didn’t feel comfortable with Michigan, the thing that attracted him most to Texas was Steve Sarkisian’s offense at Alabama and all the Tide receivers who had just come through Tuscaloosa on their way to the NFL, including Heisman Trophy winner DeVonta Smith, who has a similar profile (wiry and blazing fast) to Worthy.
Whether Sarkisian said he could see Worthy having a similar role in his Texas offense as Smith had at Alabama or Worthy could simply see himself in a similar role as Smith — only at Texas — Worthy was sold. And he’s had a relentless work ethic to deliver on that kind of promise since he arrived in Austin.
Worthy doesn’t go out much. He keeps to himself. You can usually find him in his apartment playing video games (he loves Fortnight). His roommates last summer included Quinn Ewers before Worthy and Texas nickel/cornerbacck Jahdae Barron became roommates this fall.
“X (Worthy) is really easy to get along with,” Ewers said.
Sarkisian and teammates have had nothing but praise for Worthy, his work ethic and determination. Receivers in Sarkisian’s offense have to grasp the concepts of an entire play, so they understand exactly how to run a route, how they fit into the progression, their blocking assignments, the play’s use of motion, etc.
Worthy worked his butt off to digest all of that as a freshman and became a freshman All-American who broke UT’s freshman records for receptions (62), receiving yards (981) and touchdown catches (12) in 2021.
According to team sources, other schools reached out to Worthy through intermediaries to see if he was interested in transferring. There might’ve been some NIL deals that came through for Worthy, and he returned.
Sarkisian said earlier this season, “X (Worthy) is the first one to practice most every day.”
After Texas’ 41-34 loss at Oklahoma State in which Worthy was targeted 16 times and caught only four passes for 78 yards and one touchdown, junior receiver Jordan Whittington was asked if he ever needs to talk to Worthy to calm any frustrations that might arise during a game?
“X, he’s an amazing player,” Whittington said. “He goes out and does his thing every week. If I feel like I need to talk to him, I’ll do it, because I’m in that role of leader in the room.
“But for him, he’s the type of player, he just, I don’t know, he’s a special talent — a really good one.”
According to team sources, after UT’s regular season ended with Worthy catching 53 passes for 696 yards and a Big 12-leading nine touchdowns that Worthy sees next season as his last year of college football. And Worthy wants to know if he’s going to work as hard as he does to get open that he ends up in the best situation possible to catch passes, make plays and help a team win big. Like championship big.
(Photo: © Tim Warner, Getty)
Teammates don’t call Worthy selfish. Just the opposite. They see how he gets open, how he blocks downfield for other teammates to make plays and how he tries to impact games in the return game.
“Coaches tell players all the time, ‘Prepare like a pro,’” said one team source. “Worthy does that — and has since he got here. He puts in the work. No one can question that. He obviously was hoping for a better year - not just for him, but for him to help the team elevate to a championship level.”
Steve Sarkisian seemed to be reaching out to Worthy on Monday, when he was asked if Worthy is happy at Texas?
“Well, I think the one thing about Xavier is this: he's a highly competitive young man,” Sarkisian said. “And from the moment he arrived on our campus, he came to work; and he came to work to earn an opportunity to play; came to work to become a starter. He came to work to be the best receiver he could be, whether that was in our conference or in the country.
“So I think the guy's got a high sense of competitiveness and drive to be the best. And he works that way every day. And so sometimes when you don't get the actual result of it, that can become a sense of frustration. I would much rather have a receiver that's frustrated that he didn't contribute more to a win than a guy who's content going on the field and playing and the ball not coming his way because I think he values his ability to get open. I do too. I get it, you know.”
Before being asked about Worthy, Sarkisian said a top priority going into Texas’ bowl game would be improving the passing game. In UT’s last five games, Quinn Ewers completed only 50 percent of his passes (78-of-156) with five touchdowns and four interceptions and was sacked eight times.
“It takes all 11,” Sarkisian said. “And it takes precision and execution. That's an area where I know we're going to spend a lot of time on, cleaning that up.”
After talking to sources, there was a sense after the regular-season ended, Worthy was determined to look elsewhere for a school where he would be showcased AND have a chance to win a championship.
But UT coaches “have put on a full-court press” to reassure Worthy that Texas is that place, according to a team source. Now, there’s a sense, according to those sources, that Worthy is leaning toward staying