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Texas quarterback Arch Manning went from celebrating a comeback win over Ohio State to being one of the top stories on ABC’s “World News Tonight” in a span of 72 hours.
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During this Monday’s media availability, Manning brought up an AI-generated video that shows Texas coach Steve Sarkisian hitting Rowe at midfield. While that obviously didn’t happen Saturday night, Sarkisian had no interest in conducting a postgame interview with ESPN.
“I have seen a few AI edits of Sark earlier, but that’s about it,” Manning told reporters before laughing. “Have you seen that one? Of him slapping Holly Rowe.”
One day later, Manning publicly apologized for his comments about Rowe.
“In my press conference yesterday, I made an insensitive comment about an AI video. There is nothing funny about it. It’s easy to say I didn’t mean it, but I know my words and actions were hurtful to a lot of people. I do not take that lightly and am deeply sorry for that,” Manning wrote on Instagram. “I specifically want to apologize to Holly Rowe for what she has personally had to deal with because of my comments. I have a ton of respect for her and appreciate her showing me grace in this moment. I need to do better and will be more thoughtful going forward.”
ABC anchor David Muir covered Manning’s actions and apology during Tuesday night’s episode of “World News Tonight.”
Matt Rivers, a news correspondent for ABC News, provided a quick recap on this situation.
Did this story get blown out of proportion?
Judging by some of the reactions online, Texas fans are furious that ABC is covering this story as if it’s a major scandal.
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“Get a grip and touch grass holy s— it’s not that deep y’all should be ashamed,” one fan wrote on X.
“This is ridiculous! He laughed because he thought it was funny! Let this kid be a kid! This isn’t news!” a second fan commented.
“This is world news? A college student laughing at a video that’s not even real?” another fan wrote.
For what it’s worth, Rowe has already accepted Manning’s apology.
“Thank you, Arch,” she posted on social media. “I appreciate our conversation about this, which will remain private. Apology accepted. We move forward with respect and kindness for one another.”
We’ll see if Manning and Rowe can move past all of this drama before Week 3 of the season begins.
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This story was originally published September 16, 2026 at 7:58 AM.