DALLAS — When Texas coach Steve Sarkisian made his opening statement on Wednesday at the Longhorns’ SEC media days debut, quarterback Quinn Ewers was the first player he mentioned. But the first question to Sarkisian from the assembled press wasn’t about Ewers or any of the other Texas players present. It was about Ewers’ backup, redshirt freshman Arch Manning.
It was a fitting scene for the unique situation Ewers finds himself in as he enters his third and potentially final year in burnt orange.
There’s no controversy: Ewers is unquestionably the starting quarterback, and that has been clear for a while. He enters 2024 as one of the betting favorites to win the Heisman Trophy. He’s considered a potential first-round pick in next year’s NFL Draft. He was one of the cover athletes for EA Sports’ College Football 25 after leading the Longhorns to the College Football Playoff last year.
But there’s still some curiosity about whether he’ll fulfill the massive potential that once made him the No. 1 overall recruit in his class. Ewers is good and has been great at times, but can he be great consistently? Texas has high expectations this season, and it will go as far as Ewers can take them.
“He’s very capable of doing anything he wants to do,” Texas left tackle Kelvin Banks said.
The Longhorns, widely considered a preseason top-five team, aren’t running away from expectations. Sarkisian called this Texas team “unequivocally” the deepest and most talented group he’s had since arriving in Austin in 2021. That’s saying a lot considering the Longhorns lost 11 draft picks from a team that went 12-2 and won the Big 12 last season.
Three of those draft picks were receivers: Xavier Worthy, Adonai Mitchell and Jordan Whittington. Tight end Ja’Tavion Sanders was another. Sarkisian did a superb job restocking those positions by hitting the transfer portal hard this offseason, landing receiver Isaiah Bond and tight end Amari Niblack from Alabama, plus receivers Matthew Golden from Houston and Silas Bolden from Oregon State. Texas also signed five-star recruit Ryan Wingo, who looks like a potential early contributor.
Former star running back Jonathon Brooks was also one of those draft picks, though the Longhorns had to finish the season without him after a torn ACL. But CJ Baxter and Jaydon Blue return to help smooth that transition.
Ewers and his experienced offensive line, which returns four starters, are expected to carry the load. And that means Ewers must show progress not just on the stat sheet — more touchdowns, fewer interceptions, a better completion percentage — but off the field.
So far, so good, according to the Longhorns.
“His personal development, his emotional development, is something that has instilled a ton of confidence in everybody in our building,” Sarkisian said. “He walks in that building like he is the starting quarterback at the University of Texas for a top-five football team, and I think that has permeated throughout our locker room.”
That’s important, because Ewers hasn’t always been that guy. When he arrived at Texas, running backs Roschon Johnson and Bijan Robinson carried much of the leadership responsibility. But teammates are noticing a different Ewers this offseason. Last year, he changed his body by losing weight and cutting his hair. This offseason, he’s becoming more vocal.
Banks said he’s seen Ewers assert himself during player-led offseason workouts. “He makes sure he (says) ‘Hey, this is the time we’ve got to get our work done,’” Banks said. “He’s making sure he stays on everybody.”
It took time for Ewers to become comfortable in a leadership role. In 2022, “he was just trying to survive,” Sarkisian said. After spending a few months at Ohio State, Ewers — as a redshirt freshman who hadn’t played meaningful snaps since his junior season at Southlake (Texas) Carroll High — was thrown into the fire as Texas’ starter. He flashed greatness in the first quarter of a loss to Alabama, but an injury knocked him out until midseason, and he turn in up-and-down performances the rest of the way.
In 2023, he became more accurate and more consistent, leading Texas to a big road win over the Crimson Tide. Another injury kept him out of two midseason games, but he came back to lead four consecutive wins before the Sugar Bowl loss to Washington in the Playoff semifinals.
There is still room for growth. Ewers completed only 55.8 percent of his passes in the Washington loss. He had a rough start in the Red River rivalry loss to Oklahoma, throwing two first-quarter interceptions, but finished strong. Can he eliminate, or further minimize, the occasional stretches of empty offensive possessions and inconsistency?
Ewers is doing all he can this offseason. He has spent considerable time working to develop a rapport with his new receivers, both on and off the field. “There’s nothing that can get you closer than just being around them,” Ewers said of his relationships with them.
Sarkisian is encouraged by how the new members of his passing attack have jelled.
“I was on the grass with him (Tuesday) watching these guys throw the ball around, and it looks as good or better than before,” Sarkisian said. “It’s fascinating to watch, but I think that’s a byproduct when you have a veteran quarterback.”
Ewers also wants to give himself the best chance to succeed at the next level. He said he bypassed entering the NFL Draft last winter because of a belief that more college football experience would increases his chance of NFL success.
“I don’t want to be a guy who just says he was picked wherever he was picked and didn’t pan out,” he said. “I want to be somebody who succeeds at the highest level of the game.”
Can he succeed at the highest level of college football, and lead Texas to an SEC and potential national championship?
Everyone on the Forty Acres seems to believe so. Even if he isn’t the first quarterback Sarkisian gets asked about at media day.
(Photo: Brett Patzke / USA Today)
