Texas starting quarterback Quinn Ewers left the Longhorns’ game against UTSA with an injury early in the second quarter, making way for redshirt freshman Arch Manning to quickly create a spark with two quick touchdowns (one passing, one rushing) in his second appearance of the season.
Ewers, the Longhorns’ third-year starter at quarterback and a Heisman Trophy candidate, was favoring the thumb on his right throwing hand after a first-quarter touchdown pass but remained in the game. Early in the second quarter, after handoff to Tre Wisner, Ewers signaled to the sideline for help and fell to the turf as medical staff arrived to evaluate him with 12:19 left in the first half.
Ewers walked to the sideline under his own power for further evaluation, then left for the locker room with a towel draped over his head. ESPN reporter Quint Kessenich said Ewers spent about 15 minutes in the injury tent before a member of the medical staff went to speak with head coach Steve Sarkisian. Ewers returned to the Longhorns sideline in street clothes just before the end of the first half.
Manning, who was the No. 1 recruit in the 2023 class and is the nephew of Peyton and Eli Manning, threw a touchdown pass on his first play from scrimmage on Saturday, a 19-yard strike to DeAndre Moore for a 21-0 lead.
OKAYYY @ArchManning & @DeandreMooreJr 😮💨 pic.twitter.com/YVuTRjpd8v
— Texas Football (@TexasFootball) September 15, 2024
UTSA responded with a 53-yard touchdown run by Robert Henry to trim the Longhorns lead to 21-7 with 11:39 left in the first half, but on the first play of the next series, Manning broke free for a 67-yard touchdown to give the Longhorns a 28-7 lead.
CAN’T TOUCH HIM 😮💨@ArchManning pic.twitter.com/65nR57qIR5
— Texas Football (@TexasFootball) September 15, 2024
Ewers led the Longhorns to their first two wins of the season, including a dominant 31-12 victory at Michigan last week. Manning scored his first career touchdowns in a 52-0 win over Colorado State on August 31.
(Photo: Tim Warner / Getty Images)