Quinn Ewers

Overview:

5-30-2024

Quinn Ewers enters his junior season as a third-year starter for the Longhorns. He is coming off an efficient 2023 campaign in which he passed for 3,479 yards, 22 TDs, six INTs, and completed 69 percent of his passes. He led Texas to a 12-1 regular season record, which earned the Longhorns a spot in the college football playoff, and although they lost in the Sugar Bowl to Washington, he performed well, passing for over 300 yards and committing no turnovers. Ewers’ play and leadership over the past few seasons have solidified him as the team’s QB1 going into 2024, even with touted recruit Arch Manning on the roster as a sophomore.

ANALYSIS

Strengths:

Ewers has controlled footwork on his drop and a confident release when stepping up into the pocket. He maintains poise, makes good decisions of where to go or not to go, and understands where and when to check down when everything downfield is covered. Overall, his accuracy is solid, with a nice touch and a surprisingly accurate GPS on deep vertical passes where he can, as they say, drop a dime. Ewers also displays placement on underneath throws that allow the receiver to catch-and-run.

Much like Beck, Ewers is nothing special athletically, but he can extend and steal yards if given space. As mentioned, he is calm in the pocket, senses pressure well and shows the skill to keep plays alive and pick up yards with his legs. He is not much of a threat to hurt a defense on the run downfield, but he keeps his head up and can find an open man working intermediate or short.

Weaknesses:

Texas’ offense features a heavy majority of RPO concepts that demand fast reads and getting the ball out quickly. Because of that, Ewers isn’t often asked to go through multiple progressions. There are times he does a good job looking off a defender for a completion, but we would like to see more of that going forward. While his arm strength is solid, it certainly is not remarkable — he is not a guy who will let rip a 60-plus-yard throw on a dime. He lacks the arm talent to throw off platform and from different angles, and he often gets balls knocked down at the LOS. Ewers’ overall decision-making is a strength, but when under pressure, especially when the pocket is pushed into his lap, he will sometimes force throws.

Summary:

In 2024, Ewers will be without many of the top targets he had last year; several made the jump to the pro level. It will be interesting if he has a Drake Maye-like dip in his production or if he improves on what he has been able to do over the past couple of seasons. One thing is for certain: Ewers will be under a microscope nationally as his projection as a pro is under scrutiny — and locally, where Arch Manning is eager to get off the bench.

— Justyce Gordon

Frankly: Ewers shocked me in that great 2022 game against Alabama when he tore up the Tide before getting injured, and I have been partial toward him ever since. Thus warned, the Tide couldn't stop him last year as he connected on 24-of-38 passes for 349 yards and three touchdowns in a win at No. 3 Alabama. In both those Bama games, I witnessed a seldom-seen trait in terms of attitude about throwing the ball. I first saw it in Justin Herbert when he moved from Oregon to the Chargers. Both Herbert and Ewers keep defenses off balance because they throw with impunity. Go ahead and cover their intended receivers — they will throw anyway and hit on a percentage higher than logical. Phsyc!

-- Frank Cooney

HISTORY — from college profile

A third-year quarterback who has played in and started 22 games … his 5,656 career passing yards rank eighth all-time in Texas history and 37 career passing touchdowns are tied for seventh … a 2023 AP All-Big 12 Second Team selection … 2023 Big 12 Championship Game Most Outstanding Player … Davey O’Brien Award 2023 semifinalist … honorable mention Big 12 Offensive Newcomer of the Year in 2022 ... transferred from Ohio State and enrolled at UT in January 2022 ... named to the 2023 Academic All-Big 12 Second Team ... a three-time member of the Big 12 Commissioner’s Honor Roll (spring 2022, fall 2022, spring 2023).

SOPHOMORE (2023)
Davey O’Brien Award and Earl Campbell Tyler Rose Award semifinalist … a second-team All-Big 12 selection by the Associated Press and Phil Steele … an honorable mention All-Big 12 honoree be conference coaches … chosen to the Johnny Unitas Golden Arm Award Top 25 … played in and started 12 games … completed 272-of-394 passes (69.0 %) for 3,479 yards, 22 touchdowns and six interceptions …  rushed 59 times for 75 yards and five touchdowns … his 3,479 passing yards were the fifth-most in a season in UT history and 272 completions rank sixth … has six 300-yard passing games, tied for the most in a season in program history … completed 19-of-30 passes for 260 yards and three touchdowns against Rice … also rushed for 12 yards and a touchdown … connected on 24-of-38 passes for 349 yards and three touchdowns in a win at No. 3 Alabama … the Longhorns secured the first victory over a Top-3 team since 2008 (Oklahoma) and the first-ever win on the road versus an AP Top-3 program … the victory snapped Alabama's 21-game home winning streak … Alabama had won 57 consecutive regular-season games versus non-conference opponents … Texas' win was also the first double-digit home loss for Alabama head coach Nick Saban as a college football head coach since 2003 … Ewers was the first non-SEC quarterback to eclipse 250 passing yards and two touchdowns since Saban took over the Crimson Tide program in 2007 … named Maxwell Player of the Week, Walter Camp National Offensive Player of the Week, Big 12 Offensive Player of the Week, Davey O’Brien National Quarterback of the Week, Manning Award Star of the Week and Earl Campbell Tyler Rose Player of the Week and to the Davey O’Brien Great 8 list for his performance against Alabama … threw for 131 yards and two touchdowns and rushed for another touchdown against Wyoming … marked his third-straight game with multiple touchdown passes … connected on 18-of-23 passes (78.3%) for 293 yards and one touchdown and rushed for 16 yards and one touchdown at Baylor … completed 25-of-35 passes (71.4%) for 325 yards and one touchdown and established career highs with 40 rushing yards and two rushing touchdowns against Kansas … had a string of 245 passes without an interception come to an end, the second-longest streak in Texas history … successful on 31-of-37 passes (83.8%) for 346 yards and one touchdown in the Red River Showdown against Oklahoma … established a program record with 19 consecutive completed passes … the 31 completions tied the mark for the 10th-most in a game in program history … marked his second-straight 300-yard passing game, the seventh Longhorn to accomplish the feat … connected on 23-of-29 passes (79.3%) for 211 yards and two touchdowns at Houston before leaving in the fourth quarter with a shoulder injury … had a streak of 14-straight completions, the eighth-longest streak in program history … passed for 317 yards on 22-of-33 passing with one touchdown at TCU … connected on 23-of-33 passes for 281 yards and two touchdowns at Iowa State … completed 17-of-26 passes for 196 yards and one touchdown against Texas Tech … had a historic outing in the Big 12 Championship Game against Oklahoma State, completing 35-of-46 passes (76.1%) for 452 yards and four touchdowns … also rushed three times for six yards … established a Big 12 title game record for passing yards and tied the record for passing TDs (all four thrown in the first half) … the 452 passing yards and 35 completions were the third-most in a game in program history … named the Big 12 Championship Game Most Outstanding Player … threw for 318 yards and one touchdown on 24-of-43 passing in the CFP Semifinal against Washington … also rushed for 54 yards on eight carries … named to the preseason watch lists for the Maxwell Award, Walter Camp Player of the Year, Davey O'Brien Award, Johnny Unitas Golden Arm Award, Manning Award, Earl Campbell Tyler Rose Award and Lonestar Player of the Year ... chosen third-team Preseason All-Big 12 by Athlon Sports and Phil Steele ... selected second-team Preseason All-Texas by Dave Campbell's Texas Football.

 

REDSHIRT FRESHMAN (2022)
Named honorable mention Big 12 Offensive Newcomer of the Year by the league’s coaches … played in and started 10 games … completed 172-of-296 passes (58.1%) for 2,177 yards, 15 touchdowns and six interceptions ... his 2,177 passing yards were the fifth-most for a Texas freshman QB and the 22nd-most in Texas history ... the 15 touchdown passes were the fourth-most in a season for a Texas freshman ... led Texas to six victories, tied for the third-most by a freshman in Texas history, while his 10 starts were tied for fourth in program history by a UT freshman quarterback ... led Texas to victory in his first career start, throwing for 225 yards and two touchdowns on 16-of-24 passing in a season-opening win over ULM … became the sixth Longhorn freshman to start the season opener and the fifth to lead Texas to victory … completed 9-of-12 passes for 134 yards in the first quarter against Alabama before leaving due to injury … connected on 21-of-31 passes (67.7%) for 289 yards and a career-high four touchdowns in a victory over Oklahoma in the Red River Showdown … also rushed twice for 17 yards against the Sooners … the four touchdowns passes are tied for the third-most by a Texas freshman quarterback and tied for 10th-most in a game in program history … named the Big 12 Offensive Newcomer of the Week for his standout performance against the Sooners … completed 17-of-26 passes for 172 yards and three touchdowns against Iowa State … threw for a career-high 319 yards while completing 19-of-49 passes with two touchdowns against Oklahoma State … surpassed 1,000 passing yards in his fifth game of the season, tied as the 11th-fastest Longhorn to accomplish the feat … completed 18-of-31 passes for 197 yards and two touchdowns in a win at Kansas State … connected on 17-of-39 passes for 171 yards versus TCU … passed for 107 yards and one touchdown on 12-of-21 passing at Kansas … completed 12-of-16 passes (75%) for 194 yards in a victory over Baylor ... connected on 31-of-47 passes for 369 yards and one touchdown against Washington in the Alamo Bowl ... established a career high for completions and passing yards ... his 31 completions and 47 passing attempts were the third-most ever for a Texas quarterback in a bowl game and tied for the 10th-most in a single game in program history ... the 369 passing yards were the third-most ever for a Longhorn in a bowl game and 16th-most in a single game a UT history ... his 31 completions are tied for the most ever in a game by a Texas freshman ... the 31 completions, 47 attempts and 369 yards are the most by a Texas freshman in a bowl game ... finished the season with a streak of 116 consecutive passes without an interception, tied for the eighth-longest streak in program history ... was a fourth-team Preseason All-Big 12 selection by Athlon Sports.

BEFORE TEXAS
A transfer from Ohio State who enrolled there in August 2021 and was a part of the program for one season after reclassifying to the high school class of 2021.

HIGH SCHOOL
An All-American who was selected to participate in the 2022 All-American Bowl … ranked No. 1 nationally overall by 247Sports, Rivals and ON3 … totaled 6,445 yards passing, 73 passing touchdowns and just eight interceptions on 450-of-643 attempts (.700), along with 701 rushing yards and 12 rushing touchdowns on 115 carries (6.1 ypc) in 22 career games as a quarterback … named a finalist for the 2020 Landry Award, which goes to the top player in North Texas … played in eight games, missing six due to injury, and recorded 2,442 yards and 28 touchdowns, while completing 159-of-241 (.660) passes with just five interceptions, and also rushing for 133 yards and three more touchdowns as a junior … threw for at least three touchdown passes in seven of his eight games played … passed for 388 yards and five touchdowns on 21-of-27 attempts (.778) on the way to 72 points against Rockwall-Heath … tossed four touchdown passes in 17 completions for 284 yards against Keller … amassed 450 yards passing and six touchdowns on 37-of-41 attempts (.902) in a playoff quarterfinals win against Trinity … helped Southlake Carroll to a 12-2 overall record, including a 6-0 district mark and title, and an appearance in the 6A Division 1 state championship game in 2020 … named second-team 6A All-State by the Texas Sports Writers Association and honorable mention by the Associated Press in 2019 … tabbed unanimous MVP of District 5-6A and first-team all-district … completed 291-of-402 passes for 4,003 yards with 45 touchdowns and just three interceptions, while rushing for 568 yards and nine touchdowns on 83 carries (6.8 ypc) as a sophomore … connected on multiple touchdown passes in 12-of-14 games, while registering three or more in 10 games … led an offense that averaged 49.3 points per game, including five games of 50 or more points … accounted for six touchdowns, including four through the air and two on the ground, to go along with 392 passing yards on 30-of-34 attempts (.882) against Permian … again accounted for six touchdowns, passing for 333 yards and four touchdowns, while rushing 117 yards and two touchdowns on nine carries (13.0 ypc) against Guyer … put together back-to-back five-touchdown performances, doing so on just 11 completions for 306 yards against Lewisville in leading the offense to 84 points, and on just 18 completions for 364 yards against DeSoto … tallied 361 passing yards and four touchdowns on 25-of-30 attempts (.833), along with two rushing touchdowns against Midland Legacy … notched season highs of 393 yards and 33 completions against Duncanville in the playoff quarterfinals … helped Southlake Carroll to a 13-1 overall record, including a 7-0 district mark and title, and an appearance in the 6A Division 1 quarterfinals in 2019 … punted seven times as a freshman in 2018 with an average of 45.3 yards per attempt, downing three inside the 20 … also played baseball at Southlake Carroll.

2022

passing
ATT	YPA	PCT	YDS	INT	TD	COMPLETIONS
295.0	7.2	0.58	2128.0	6.0	15.0	171.0

rushing
YPC	TD	YDS	CAR	LONG
-2.2	1.0	-52.0	24.0	16.0

fumbles
REC	LOST	FUM
0.0	1.0	2.0