Manning apologizes to Rowe after laughing at AI video of coach slapping reporter

Texas quarterback Arch Manning issued a public apology on Monday after laughing during the previous day's media availability about an AI-generated video depicting coach Steve Sarkisian slapping ESPN reporter Holly Rowe. The incident occurred two days after Texas engineered a 20-point comeback to defeat No. 1 Ohio State 24-23, with the Longhorns rallying from a 20-3 deficit.

When asked about TikTok and Twitter edits celebrating the win, Manning said, "I saw a few AI edits and stuff, but that's about it. I saw AI edits of Sark's interview," according to Awful Announcing's reporting. When pressed about a specific AI version, Manning asked "Have y'all seen that one? That's a good one" and laughed, adding "Of him slapping Holly Rowe?" and "It's hilarious."

On3 reporter Evan Vieth, who asked the original question, captioned Manning's answer "gold" on social media. By Tuesday morning, the clip had accumulated more than 20 million views, according to CBS Sports. A social media user had created an AI-generated video of Sarkisian turning back and slapping Rowe in the face and yelling at the camera. The video received substantially more views after Manning brought attention to it with his comments, per CBS Sports.

On Monday, roughly 21 hours after the clip went viral, Manning posted an apology statement on social media: "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 added, "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."

Rowe publicly accepted the apology shortly after, writing, "Thank you Arch. I appreciate our conversation about this, which will remain private. Apology accepted. We move forward with respect and kindness for one another," according to Awful Announcing. The two had spoken privately.

On Tuesday, roughly 21 hours after the clip went viral, Vieth apologized as well. He wrote, "Captioning Manning's response with 'gold' trivialized an AI video depicting violence against a colleague, and that is a mistake I deeply regret." Vieth stated, "I originally asked Manning if he had seen any of the TikTok creator edits from the weekend, ones where his celebration is shown over music and fans had taken their own creative spin on a massive win. I hadn't seen the video he was referring to, so in the fast-paced setting of a press conference, I acted far too fast in hitting send on a tweet that I regret." He added, "But intent isn't the same as impact, and I own that. I sincerely apologize for how I chose to present the tweet, and I'll be more careful going forward, especially when it comes to AI-generated content and how quickly I hit send."

Context from Saturday's game: Rowe was visibly annoyed after Sarkisian walked away from the traditional postgame interview, yelling "Texas fight! Hook 'em!" and running off. Sarkisian also ran away from reporter Laura Rutledge at halftime, claiming they made him wait too long. Rutledge said on the broadcast that Sarkisian apologized to her at the time before running off, and that a technical issue was to blame after Ohio State coach Ryan Day's interview. ESPN issued a public apology to Sarkisian via Rutledge at the start of the third quarter, shouldering the blame for the technical issues.

The 20-point comeback was the biggest comeback of the 21st century against an AP No. 1 team.