Texas QB Quinn Ewers reportedly suffered an AC joint sprain in his right (throwing) shoulder in Saturday’s win over Houston, according to Rivals’ Orangebloods.com.
Ewers left the 31-24 win in the second half and was replaced by redshirt freshman backup Maalik Murphy. On Monday, Texas head coach Steve Sarkisian said Ewers is “week-to-week” and that Murphy will likely get the start in UT’s Week 9 game vs. BYU.
According to sources, Texas QB Quinn Ewers sustained an AC joint sprain in his throwing shoulder against Houston. The injury occurred on a sack. There is optimism he will play again this season. As of Sunday night, there is no timetable for his return. Should learn more this week
— Anwar Richardson (@AnwarRichardson) October 23, 2023
Ewers is 151-of-213 passing for 1,915 yards so far this season, with 13 TD passes and three interceptions. He has also rushed for five TDs. Texas is 6-1 and currently ranked No. 7 in the AP Top 25.
Saturday’s injury is the second shoulder injury for Ewers in as many seasons. He suffered a left clavicle sprain in Texas’ Week 2 loss to Alabama in 2022. He missed only three games after that injury and returned for the Longhorns’ Red River blowout win of the Sooners in Week 6.
With Ewers out, Murphy and five-star freshman Arch Manning will take the bulk of the snaps in practice during the week. Murphy was a four-star recruit in the class of 2022 as the No. 7 prospect in the state of California and the No. 8 pro-style quarterback in the class.
Sarkisian said Murphy has the edge over Manning and would get the start “if the game was today.”
“We’ll go through the week,” Sarkisian said. “Arch and Maalik will both get a ton of reps. If the game was today, Maalik would start and Arch will be ready to go. We’re fortunate. Not every school is as fortunate as we are to have the quarterback room we have.”
When forced into action vs. Houston, Murphy “showed great poise and composure,” Sarkisian said.
Texas does not have any ranked opponents remaining on its schedule. The Longhorns have home games against BYU and Kansas State up next and then road games against TCU and Iowa State before the season finale at home against Texas Tech. The Longhorns lost to Oklahoma in Week 6, and the two teams look destined for a rematch in the Big 12 title game in December.