Loreal Sarkisian is the wife of Texas Longhorns' head coach Steve Sarkisian, although the two are going through a divorce. She has always been a private woman, but back in 2022, she had an interview with KXAN, sitting down with anchor Britt Moreno.
They discussed her upbringing, her parents, and her newly acquired fame as the wife of a prolific college football coach. Sarkisian also talked about her mom being the creative one in the family and remembered her always making clothes for her and her siblings:
"They did a really good job of us not knowing how hard it was for them. I look back and I see my dad, and we're eating, and he's eating our leftovers. I don't know what it took to raise us, because that wasn't for us to be burdened with. I just know they did a good job of raising us."
Loreal Sarkisian also mentioned that both of her parents were athletes when they were younger. Her mom, Loretta Smith, was even a high school track and field coach.
Sarkisian followed in her mother's footsteps, becoming a high-level track athlete, and ran hurdles for North Carolina A&T State University where she broke the 13-second barrier. After her running career, she went on to coach track at the University of Southern California.
Loreal Sarkisian initially found Texas' welcome to be 'overwhelming in a good way'
Steve and Loreal Sarkisian got married on June 29, 2020. They had been dating for several years before that, although they have not spoken publically about when they officially started dating. Steve had previously been married to Stephanie Sarkisian for 18 years. They were married in 1997 before getting divorced in 2015.
Since marrying Steve Sarkisian, Loreal has become affectionately known as the first lady of Texas football. Although the name was a surprise, she appreciated the warm welcome from the Texas fans. In the interview, she discussed her new nickname:
"Listen, everything that has come with being at Texas has suprised me... and it's overwhelming. Not overwhelming in a bad way but in a good way!"
She went on to talk about how while she and Steve have a glamorous public life, they prefer to have date nights at home. After so much time in public, they enjoyed relaxing and having date nights on the couch.
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