Texas QB Quinn Ewers laughs off viral moment of disrespect from Michigan dad asking for Horns Down

No matter if the Texas Longhorns are having a good season or bad, the starting quarterback is a high-profile figure in Austin. Adding a Heisman campaign to that is rocket fuel.

Quarterback Quinn Ewers is leading the second-ranked Longhorns (2-0) while doing TV commercials and carrying himself as the face of the state's flagship program.

But sometimes, you have to put up with some craziness.

CBS Austin sportscaster Bob Ballou captured one of the wildest shots of the entire weekend. In Ballou’s social media post, Ewers can be seen walking through a happy Michigan Stadium just after the game. A young fan comes up wanting a photo with his father ready to capture the special moment.

The fan’s father points his camera phone at Ewers and his son, but before snapping the picture, he encourages his son to throw the Horns Down hand sign.

Ewers takes the photo and then quickly moves on. The whole interplay, which lasted just a few seconds, said just as much about the father as it did Ewers. The entire exchange went viral on social media.

“I mean, it was a little weird, for sure, that his dad was telling me to put the Horns Down,” Ewers said Monday, “but I just kind of played it off or whatever.”

Asked whether he has to be cognizant of his surroundings, Ewers evaded the question just like he does oncoming linebackers.

“I mean, I don't like to look at myself like I'm bigger than anything,” Ewers said. “So, I mean, it hadn't really changed much in my mind. I don't really pay much attention to it.”

Ewers was named the SEC offensive player of the week on Monday for his performance against Michigan. He completed 24 of 36 passes for 246 yards and three touchdowns.

“I think one thing about Quinn that sometimes gets lost is because of his cool, calm demeanor that sometimes we don’t see the anger, the frustration come out that I’m privy to on a regular basis,” Texas coach Steve Sarkisian said Monday.

“So the competitor in Quinn was pissed after that game. You know that?,” the coach added. “You know he felt like he’s better than that. We all felt like we were better than that, and we squandered a lead in that game that we felt like we had under control.”

Sarkisian pointed out how Ewers is something of a perfectionist. “He missed a couple throws. We dropped some passes. We didn't protect great, and it snowballed.”