Quinn Ewers remains Texas’ starting QB despite Arch Manning madness

AUSTIN — On Thursday morning, head coach Steve Sarkisian announced that freshman quarterback Arch Manning would start Saturday against ULM. But regardless of his performance, Sarkisian made it clear that junior Quinn Ewers is still his starter.

Ewers suffered an abdominal injury against UTSA and while he is recovering well, Sarkisian wants to keep him sidelined for another week just to make sure he is as healthy as possible when SEC play begins next week against Mississippi State.

Even though Ewers is dealing with the frustration of being injured again, Sarkisian knows he’ll be ready to return when healthy and has no doubts about his talent.

“Every time you come out of a game, there’s frustration,” Sarkisian said. “As the week goes on, he’s in a really good mood. One thing I’ve tried to impress on him is that all the goals that he set for himself and that we set for him at the beginning of the season are still there for him. I think we have a national-caliber team and he’s the quarterback of this team.”

Before his injury, Ewers was playing some of the best football of his career. In three games, he completed 58 of 79 passes for 691 yards and eight touchdowns. His performance against Michigan earned him national respect and a spot at the top of the Heisman Trophy odds.

“With some of the games that we have coming up, (Ewers) is going to be in New York for the Heisman whether he wins it or not, but he has the ability to do it,” Sarkisian said. “I think he has the ability to be a top-five pick in the NFL draft. All the things that I think he’s capable of are still there for him. Him not playing this game on Saturday won’t impact those three things that are goals that we’ve set for him and that he’s working on.”

Sarkisian also added that Ewers is in good spirits and is ready to return once he is fully healthy. While Ewers is upset about not being able to play football this week, he understands he is doing what he needs to do to get healthy and focus on the longevity of the season.

As Texas begins SEC play for the first time next week, Sarkisian has full confidence that Ewers will be ready to play at the highest level when his number is called.