Tom Herman isn't ready to name a starting quarterback yet, but the Texas coach acknowledged Thursday that freshman Sam Ehlinger has outplayed incumbent Shane Buechele thus far in fall camp.
"Shane is playing well, but Sam has played better," Herman said, according to Nick Moyle of the San Antonio Express-News. "We'll see where we are at the end of the week and if it's too close to call it's too close to call."
The end of the week marks the approximate timetable in which Herman would like to have an idea about who'll enter Week 1 as the starter.
Buechele won the job out of camp last year under Charlie Strong, but Herman said the second-year pivot needs to "cut down on the mistakes" as well as turnovers if he's to retain the role.
"It's a much more complex offense than what he is used to," Herman said. "So I think at times - 'forget' is not the right word - but (he) reverts back to just, 'take the snap and throw it to who I think is going to be open on this play.' And that's not always the case.
"You've got to read defenses, you've got to adjust protections, you've got to put people in motion. You've got to do a lot of things in our offense. He's getting there. I'm confident that in the next 16 days that he can get there, especially when you start dialing into a game plan."
Buechele threw for 2,958 yards with 21 touchdowns and 11 interceptions as a freshman in 2016. The Longhorns host Maryland to open the 2017 campaign Sept. 2.