Texas AD clarifies use of AI on key play in loss to Florida - ESPN

Texas athletic director Chris Del Conte on Friday sought to clarify a report that the Longhorns used an AI-driven data analytics platform when they decided to go for it on a key fourth-and-2 play that failed in last weekend's 27-24 loss to Florida.

A story in the Austin American-Statesman published earlier Friday stirred Texas fans when it said Del Conte cited the play as an example of the football team's use of the new platform. The Longhorns, who trailed 20-17 at the time, didn't convert in the situation, with Arch Manning losing 3 yards, but the newspaper said Del Conte called it a pivotal embrace of Bevo Lab.

On Texas Football later posted on X that Del Conte clarified he cited it as an example of what the AI platform «could suggest, not what it actually did.»

The AI data analytics initiative, called Bevo Lab, was officially announced by Texas on Friday, with the Longhorns saying it will «serve as higher education's premier sports intelligence platform and living laboratory.»

Texas says the school is leveraging its connections with Dell and Google Cloud, both of which are led by Longhorns alums, and that all 21 sports programs and their 500 athletes will participate in the hub for analytics and research.

«Bevo Lab will become the global benchmark for innovation in sports AI and data analytics, making Texas Athletics the most data-driven athletic program in the country,» Del Conte said. «What starts here changes the world, and this vision will transform collegiate athletics.»

The school said about 40 student researchers will manage modeling and data projects under the direction of Kirk Goldsberry, a data analyst, former ESPN basketball analyst and author who later served as the San Antonio Spurs' vice president for