Texas is hiring Rutgers assistant Mark Orphey to coach safeties, per reports. Orphey is a Houston native who spent the last three season as an assistant for the Scarlet Knights, leading one of the top pass defenses in the country. Orphey spent the 2021 season at Alabama and two seasons at Utah State before arriving at Rugers. He was a three-year starter at Texas Southern from 2008-10. 

Steve Sarkisian was forced into a rare coaching change on the defensive side of the ball when safeties coach Blake Gideon left Texas to become defensive coordinator at Georgia Tech. Gideon, who started over 50 times for the Longhorns in his playing career, coached was part of the original staff Sarkisian hired in 2021. 

Texas has reached back-to-back College Football Playoff semifinals and will enter 2025 as a national championship favorite thanks to a talented roster headlined by new starting quarterback Arch Manning. Orphey inherits a talented safeties room at Texas that includes All-American Michael Taaffe. 

Orangebloods.com was first to report.