Texas coach Steve Sarkisian evaluates quarterback play in season opener

Texas coach Steve Sarkisian had a lot to like about his quarterback play in Saturday’s season opener. The Longhorns started redshirt freshman Hudson Card, but junior Casey Thompson also saw snaps.

Card finished 14-of-21 passing for 224 yards and two touchdowns. Thompson was 4-of-5 for 41 yards and a touchdown. Neither quarterback threw an interception.

“I thought both guys played very efficiently,” Sarkisian said. “I thought both guys for the most part took advantage of their opportunities when they got them. Both guys did a nice job on third down.”

Texas revealed earlier this week that though Card would start the game, Thompson would still get a chance to play. The junior made his first appearance in the third quarter. At the time he entered the game, the Longhorns had a 28-12 lead.

He led Texas to a touchdown on his first drive of the game, capping it off with a 14-yard pass to Jordan Whittington.

Sarkisian said his plan all along was to put Thompson in toward the end of the game. The game experience both quarterbacks gained will be extremely valuable.

“It wasn’t gut feeling,” Sarkisian said. “It was just kind of when was the right time to do it. Getting Casey in there around the middle of the third quarter and letting him play about a quarter-and-a-half of football. Hudson got two-and-a-half quarters. That’s big for us. Neither guy has a lot of experience. So for them to get that opportunity is gonna be big for us moving forward as a team. All in all, it was effective. Those two guys played pretty efficiently.”

It remains to be seen whether the Longhorns will eventually abandon their two-quarterback game plan. But it seemed to work well Saturday. One would think Card has the advantage should they settle on a singular quarterback.

Either way, Sarkisian couldn’t have been more pleased with the quarterback play Saturday. Next time we’ll see Texas take the field is Sept. 11 at 6 p.m. EST in Fayetteville, Arkansas.

“We’re probably in a better position at the quarterback position than a lot of people because I really believe we have two guys that can play,” Sarkisian said previously about his quarterbacks. “I believe in having a starter and having a backup. But man, when you know I’ve got a backup that can play at a high level and operate our offense the way we want to operate, that’s really a luxury for us. There’s a lot of teams that maybe have a returning starter who’s a frontline guy, but their backup might not be very capable. Well, we’re in a pretty good position that way.”