Turns out, Quinn Ewers does need backup.
Because when the starting Texas quarterback went down with an abdominal injury in the second quarter of Saturday’s game, the No. 2 Longhorns needed Arch Manning to finish the job — despite what the tongue-in-cheek commercials say.
In all seriousness, Manning stepped up and proved to be more than just a famous backup by throwing for 223 yards and four touchdowns while adding a 67-yard rushing score in a dominant 56-7 win over UTSA.
Ewers left the game in the second quarter due to what was eventually diagnosed as an oblique strain. He looked to have sustained the non-contact injury on a 49-yard pass to tight end Gunnar Helm, then stayed on the field for one more play before turning to the sideline and pointing to his midsection. Ewers was in the injury tent on the sideline for a while before heading to the locker room and later re-emerging in street clothes.
On Sunday, reports suggested that Ewers won’t be out for long, perhaps only missing this week’s game against Louisiana-Monroe.
But getting banged up is unfortunately nothing new for Ewers. In 2022, he suffered a clavicle injury in the first half of Texas’ 20-19 loss to Alabama and missed three games, coming back just in time to beat Oklahoma in the Red River Rivalry, 49-0. Last year, he sprained his AC joint in a win over Houston, forcing him to miss two games. Ewers recovered and went on to lead Texas to the Big 12 Championship and the College Football Playoff.
“Because Quinn’s been through it and I think because those other injuries he got with the shoulder were so structural and they were contact-type injuries, I think he’s probably in a little better spirits,” Sarkisian said. “We’ve got to do everything on our part to get him as healthy as we can as quickly as possible.”
Coming up after Louisiana-Monroe, Texas hosts Mississippi State before the bye week, giving Ewers time to rest. Then the schedule picks up with tougher opponents, like in consecutive showdowns against No. 15 Oklahoma on Oct. 12 and No. 1 Georgia on Oct. 19.
Even if Ewers misses more time than expected, the Longhorns shouldn’t miss a beat or be concerned about this dooming their CFP hopes. Sarkisian said the coaching staff spent time during the spring getting Manning extra reps so he’d be prepared if and when his name was called. Last year, he was the third-string quarterback behind Maalik Murphy, who transferred to Duke in the offseason, and up until this week had only attempted 11 passes.
But Manning was ready to go on Saturday. He threw a touchdown on his first snap, a 19-yard pass to DeAndre Moore Jr. to put Texas up 21-0. While trainers were tending to Ewers, Sarkisian pulled Manning over on the sideline before he entered the game. They talked about the play call and Manning responded saying: “That’s perfect. Great.” And went out and executed.
“That’s just kind of who Arch is,” Sarkisian said. “He’s just a normal guy that plays quarterback at the University of Texas. The name on the back of his jersey is one thing, but who he is as a teammate is another. He just wants to play really good for all the guys around him.”
On the next drive, Manning showed off his speed and mobility by doing his best Vince Young impression, racing for a 67-yard touchdown — the longest touchdown run by a Texas quarterback since Young in 2005. Manning took a 28-7 lead into halftime and dazzled with more explosive plays after the break. There was a 51-yard touchdown pass to Isaiah Bond and a 75-yard touchdown pass to Ryan Wingo before later turning over the keys to third-string quarterback Trey Owens.
Sarkisian explained that in practice, they work on the “toughest stuff” with all the backups, since “we never know when one of those guys has to go in.” That way, he doesn’t have to limit the playbook.
“I don’t feel like I’m handcuffed because Arch is in the game,” Sarkisian said. “I didn’t think like, ‘Well, Arch is in there, let’s take it easy.'”
Ewers had been efficient before his injury, completing 14-of-16 passes for 185 yards with two touchdowns and an interception. He was confident, especially coming off a major win over Michigan on the road a week ago.
“Quinn is in pretty good spirits,” Sarkisian said. “He was playing such good football. My hope is that this isn’t a long-term thing, that we’ll get him back. We need as many healthy good players as we can get for this journey that we’re on.”
Regardless of how long Ewers is out, Manning will only benefit from the reps. Whenever Ewers leaves and heads to the NFL, the starting job will be his, and he won’t have to take the reins without having ever played meaningful snaps.
“This is great experience for him,” Sarkisian said. “Valuable experience.”
Laken Litman covers college football, college basketball and soccer for FOX Sports. She previously wrote for Sports Illustrated, USA Today and The Indianapolis Star. She is the author of “Strong Like a Woman,” published in spring 2022 to mark the 50th anniversary of Title IX. Follow her on Twitter @LakenLitman.
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