Even out injured, the Texas starting quarterback made a difference with his leadership.

AUSTIN, Texas — With the No. 1 Texas Longhorns leading the Louisiana-Monroe Warhawks 37-3 at the end of the third quarter at Darrell K Royal-Texas Memorial Stadium on Saturday, cornerback Jahdae Barron and safety Michael Taaffe turned to injured starting quarterback Quinn Ewers for some leadership.

Ewers delivered one of the most impassioned speeches of his college career.

Count linebacker David Gbenda as a teammate motivated by the speech.

“Got me ready to run through a brick wall,” he said on Monday.

Barron recounted how the moment happened.

“Quinn came in and it was just the juice level, the excitement that he had for everybody playing, and then him just rooting on Arch [Manning] the entire game,” Barron said on Monday. “You love that type of thing from a leader. We love Quinn as a leader and he has that role and we trust him. He was just hyping us up there and I’m having a good time enjoying the moment.”

For a mild-mannered quarterback who preferred to be at home by himself instead of out with teammates, Ewers has steadily pushed himself out of his comfort zone over the last two years, growing into a more vocal leader.

“The thing I’m probably most proud of him about is his leadership. This guy is exuding confidence right now, and there’s nothing better for anybody in your organization, for anybody in your building to walk in and to say, there’s our guy, and our guy is exuding confidence. He’s carrying himself the right way. He’s doing things the right way, not only on the field but off the field. He’s our leader, and we can unequivocally say that about Quinn Ewers,” Texas head coach Steve Sarkisian said at SEC Media Days.

Now Ewers understands that leadership doesn’t take a night off just because he’s out with an injury.

“Regardless of what he’s doing, he’s still ready to motivate us and keep the standard the standard by letting us know what it is and what it’s not in terms of what we need to bring regardless of the quarter, regardless who we’re playing, and even in his status right now with everything that’s going on surrounding him, he’s still out there leading, giving us his best, that speaks to him as a person and a leader, honestly that just made me respect him a lot more than what he’s already brought because we go behind 3,” Gbenda said.