Steve Sarkisian had a full-blown crisis on his hands at halftime. His Texas Longhorns were getting soundly outplayed by Ohio State, trailing 20-3, and the locker room was waiting for answers. Naturally, when an ESPN microphone was thrust toward him on his way out, fans expected the usual quick coach speak. But the head coach walked straight past, leaving viewers wondering if he was just blowing off the press out of sheer frustration.

Steve Sarkisian did not stop for the usual halftime chat with Laura Rutledge. It’s easy for fans to assume that Texas was getting embarrassed and its coach wanted to get inside and start fixing it. But that’s not the story. The ESPN anchor later explained that the network had run into technical problems, forcing Sarkisian to wait longer than expected. By the time the interview was ready to happen, he had already spent enough time standing around.

“Alright, we actually just lost Sark because he had to go,” she said during the broadcast. “I’m sorry about that, you guys. He waited for a long time. Credit to him for waiting. We’ll try to get him on the way out of the half.”

In live television, every second of a 20-minute halftime is strictly timed, and sideline interviews operate on tight broadcast cues. Technical glitches like dead audio or lost camera feeds do happen in live games, but delaying a head coach who needs every second in the locker room is a production nightmare. When those wires get crossed, network protocol usually dictates pulling the plug so the coach can get back to his team without taking the hit on live TV.

The clarification came after Holly Rowe had interviewed Ohio State coach Ryan Day. Cameras then showed Steve Sarkisian sprinting toward the locker room, and on the surface, it made it look like he had simply blown off the interview. But Laura Rutledge wanted to make sure that wasn’t the impression viewers were left with.

“I do want to make sure we clear something up,” she clarified via Awful Announcing. “[Steve Sarkisian] did decline the interview at the half. He had waited a long time, been very patient with some technical issues that we had. He apologized to us. We should be apologizing to him, which we did. But that’s exactly what happened just in case anyone at home is wondering.”

So, yes, Steve Sarkisian declined. But there was a reason. ESPN’s technical trouble had already eaten into his halftime window, and he eventually had somewhere more important to be. He had a football game to save.

Texas couldn’t have scripted a worse opening against Ohio State. The Longhorns gave the ball away on their first two drives, allowing the Buckeyes to jump ahead 10-0 before the game had really settled. One turnover came on the first play from scrimmage. Another came when a pass intended for Cam Coleman bounced awkwardly and ended up with Jaylen McClain.

Texas did get moving. RBs Raleek Brown and Hollywood Smothers provided some life on the ground, but mistakes kept killing promising possessions. WR Ryan Wingo dropped what could have been a touchdown, forcing the Longhorns to settle for a field goal. Then came another damaging decision. 

Texas turned the ball over on downs near midfield late in the half, and Ohio State immediately turned the mistake into seven more points. And then there was Jeremiah Smith, who faced pressure in their previous matchups. But this time, the Buckeyes star WR had six catches for 110 yards and a touchdown before halftime. OSU kept moving him around, creating problems Texas wasn’t solving.

So Steve Sarkisian had a long list to address. The interview wasn’t really the issue, but the 17-point deficit was.