Ahead of the Texas Longhorns SEC debut against the Mississippi State Bulldogs, Coach Steve Sarkisian made something clear to Arch Manning and Quinn Ewers on who will start this pivotal match.

The Longhorns are acknowledged as one of the best teams in college football, regardless of who they start at the quarterback position. The team’s QB room is second to none and has come to show early on the season. As Quinn Ewers sustained an abdominal strain, Manning took the reins and the offense did not lose a step.

The Longhorns will face their first true challenge when they come up against Mississippi State on their first conference game of the year. The Bulldogs are not the hottest team in the NCAA right now, whatsoever. However, SEC games are always meaningful and regardless of the team’s record they are not a cakewalk. The Longhorns will not leave anything to chance. On that note Sarkisian has made something clear to his quarterbacks.

We’re going to decide on the quarterback thing tomorrow,” Sarkisian said, via On3. “It won’t be a secret. We’re not trying to pull the wool over anybody’s eyes. Just want to give Quinn every opportunity to see if he’s ready to play and what he looks like. I’d say he’s improved every day. I think Arch has had a very good week.”

Texas quarterback Quinn Ewers (3) runs with the ball during NCAA football game action between the Texas Longhorns and the Washington Huskies at Caesars Superdome in New Orleans, Louisiana.

What Sarkisian needs to see from Ewers

Sarkisian has stated Ewers is the QB1 in Texas, time and time again. He really couldn’t stress that enough. However, Ewers is back healthy but the coaching staff has not been convinced to announce him as the starter on Saturday, yet. Sarkisian explained what he needs to see from Ewers to name him the starter.

He (Ewers) has got to do enough to show me he can play. Can he execute the game plan? I want to make sure he’s healthy enough to play at a high level.”