Over the past week, Texas football lost the services of two of the five scholarship running backs on its roster.

Sophomore CJ Baxter has suffered a season-ending knee injury while an Achilles tear will sideline freshman Christian Clark this fall. Baxter, who was the presumed starter, was injured at a practice Aug. 6. Clark went down on Monday.

"It definitely hurts to see that go down," quarterback Quinn Ewers said after Tuesday night's practice. "Injuries do happen, it's just a part of the game that we play and it sucks to see that for sure. At the end of the day, I think (running back) coach (Tashard) Choice and coach (Steve Sarkisian) do a great job of recruiting good running backs that can ultimately fill in the position if needed."

During his 10-minute Zoom session with reporters, Ewers was asked if his role as a team leader was amplified in the aftermath of the injuries.

"I think so. For sure," he replied.

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"The team definitely needs that positivity every now and then whenever a couple guys like that go down in that room," Ewers said. "At the end of the day, I think we have guys that are going to be more than capable of stepping in and filling up those roles."

So Ewers will need to step up as a leader after these injuries. But must he also step up as a rusher?

The loss of Baxter and Clark leaves junior Jaydon Blue and sophomore Quintrevion Wisner, who have combined for 92 carries in their collegiate careers, as the veterans in the Texas backfield. Freshman Jerrick Gibson is another name to know. To replenish its depth chart at running back, Texas will need to either increase the role of a walk-on like junior Colin Page or ask a player to switch positions.

Another option could also end up being Ewers himself. The quarterback averaged only 1.3 yards per rushing attempt in 2023, but opposing sacks do factor into those numbers and he did score five times on the ground. Not counting sacks, Ewers averaged 6.9 yards per carry.

"I'm just trying to do whatever I can to help this team win football games. So, if that means I need to run more, then so be it," Ewers said.

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As an On Texas Football report pointed out on social media this week, the well-documented injuries that Texas running backs dealt with in 2019 (nearly a half-dozen went down with an injury) were partially offset by the fact that Sam Ehlinger was the team's quarterback. Ehlinger led Texas in rushing during the 2017 season and then ran for 16 touchdowns the following year, so it wasn't a shock to see him record a team-high 163 rushing attempts in 2019.

Now Ewers isn't Elhlinger, who is preparing for his fourth season with the Indianapolis Colts. It's Ewers' arm that will serve as the catalyst for the offense when Texas' season opens Aug. 31.

But that doesn't mean Ewers can't run a little. Last year the 6-foot-2, 210-pound Ewers took off for 29- and 30-yard scoring runs against Baylor and Kansas and ran for a 21-yard gain against Washington in the Sugar Bowl.

This article originally appeared on Austin American-Statesman: Texas football's Quinn Ewers willing to run amid RB injuries