Did Texas use artificial intelligence to call fourth-down play against Florida? Longhorns AD clarifies report

On the same day that the University of Texas announced a new artificial intelligence (AI) lab on campus called the Bevo Lab, some fans started wondering whether football coach Steve Sarkisian was using AI to choose his team's offensive plays.

Things have been unusual for the Texas football program in Austin, to say the least.

Fans are upset about the plays chosen by head coach Steve Sarkisian and the disappointing performance of quarterback Arch Manning. Texas has also lost two games in a row against teams that were not ranked among the best teams.

On Friday, the university announced that it had built a modern facility on campus. The facility will use AI to help athletic staff make decisions and handle their everyday work.

The new AI lab is 25,000 square feet. It will be a place where Texas coaches can use new technology to make better decisions and help their teams.

Texas Longhorns head coach Steve Sarkisian watches the first half of a game against the Tennessee Volunteers at Neyland Stadium in Knoxville, Tennessee, on September 26, 2026. (Getty Images)

Did Steve Sarkisian use AI to choose a fourth-down play, like in a Madden video game?

With help from Google, the university has started creating new tools to deal with changes in college sports. These tools include ways to manage sharing money with athletes and building team rosters.

But on Friday morning, a report from the Austin American-Statesman caused confusion about whether the new AI system was helping the Texas Longhorns football team choose plays during games.

The report said that Texas used its new AI project during the fourth quarter of last week's game against Florida at Royal-Memorial Stadium. Texas was losing 20-17 and faced fourth down with two yards needed to keep the ball. The team needed something to turn the game around. According to the report, coach Steve Sarkisian and his staff turned to their new AI system for studying data, called Bevo Lab.

The report also said that the Longhorns failed to gain the two yards they needed. Quarterback Arch Manning actually lost three yards on the play. But the report said athletic director Chris Del Conte saw that moment as an important step toward using the new technology.

Texas fans quickly began posting on social media. Many thought Sarkisian had opened the AI system and asked it which play to choose, almost as if he were playing the video game EA Sports College Football 2026.

Fans had many different reactions. Some wondered what else could go wrong this season. They had already spent three difficult weeks worrying about what would happen if Texas failed to reach the College Football Playoff (CFP), even with Arch Manning and a team that cost a lot of money to put together.

But Texas fans can feel a little better about this particular concern.

Athletic director Chris Del Conte apparently heard about the confusion on Friday morning, while the university was making its big AI announcement. About an hour later, he explained what the report had meant.

According to Bobby Burton, Del Conte clarified a published article that said Texas had decided to try to gain two yards on fourth down against Florida because of information from Bevo Lab.

Del Conte explained that he had only used the fourth-down situation as an example of the kind of advice the AI system could give. He did not mean that Bevo Lab had actually helped make that decision during the game.

Arch Manning, No. 16 for the Texas Longhorns, reacts after his team beats the Tennessee Volunteers 20-17 at Neyland Stadium in Knoxville, Tennessee, on September 26, 2026. (Getty Images)

Longhorns fans seem close to losing their patience

Steve Sarkisian and his football staff are using AI to help organize their daily work, just as many people do in regular office jobs.

But I do not think Sarkisian is telling Arch Manning which play to run on fourth down based on an answer from an AI chatbot. It seems unlikely that Texas coaches would be typing questions into AI on the sidelines while an important game was at stake.

Texas head coach Steve Sarkisian celebrates with his players after they beat Ohio State in a college football game in Austin, Texas, on September 12, 2026. (AP Photo/Eric Gay)

I know Texas fans are feeling nervous and upset right now. But everyone should try to stay calm before the Longhorns play Ole Miss on Saturday night.

If Arch Manning and the Texas offense cannot play better against the Ole Miss Rebels, the possibility of AI choosing plays might be the smallest of their problems.