Texas quarterback Quinn Ewers sprained the AC joint in his throwing shoulder against Houston last Saturday and is set to miss some time. The injury is not believed to be season-ending, but the Longhorns will need to turn the keys of the offense over to one of their backup quarterbacks.
For what it’s worth, Maalik Murphy has served as Ewers’s primary backup all season, with Longhorns coach Steve Sarkisian being consistent in bringing prized recruit Arch Manning along slowly. Murphy took over at quarterback when Ewers left the win over Houston on Saturday, and completed one of his two passing attempts for seven yards.
However, with Ewers now hurt, Manning will be getting more reps in practice this week, Sarkisian told reporters on Tuesday.
“We’ll go through the week and Arch and Maalik will both get a ton of reps,” Sarkisian began. “If the game was being played today, Maalik would start the game and again, Arch will be ready to go. And like I said before, I have a ton of confidence in Arch. A couple weeks ago he had a fantastic practice, and so I’m really encouraged by that. I think coach Milwee has done a great job with both those guys, so I think we’re fortunate.”
Longhorns head coach Steve Sarkisian said QBs Arch Manning and Maalik Murphy "will both get a ton of reps" this week in preparation for BYU 👀
— Yahoo Sports College Football (@YahooSportsCFB) October 24, 2023
(via @TexasLonghorns) pic.twitter.com/zAQeKOjqkI
It’s likely that Manning will backup Murphy on Saturday when the No. 7 Longhorns take on BYU in Austin, but the quarterback situation as a whole will be something to monitor as Texas continues to move through Big 12 play.
