Steve Sarkisian analyzes Quinn Ewers' growth entering second season at Texas

If Texas is back, Quinn Ewers has to be one of the best quarterbacks in the country this season.

Longhorns head coach Steve Sarkisian gets that — he understands what is expected out of his QB1, but doesn’t want it to be lost on everyone that Ewers only has one year of true college football under his belt heading into the new year.

“You’ve got to remember, his freshman year in college he basically graduated high school early, went to Ohio State, and then we got him [the next] January,” Sarkisian said on The Herd. “So, we kind of felt like last year was his freshman year with us. And there were some great moments. There was a few great games there where he just played lights out.

“And then there were some growing pains and that’s part of playing the position. You know, ideally, I would love for him to be able to sit and watch somebody and learn and watch their mistakes and learn from those teachable moments. But in the end, he got some invaluable experience. I did think he saw the value of changing his body. You can see the maturity in him as he continues to grow.”

Ewers had an up-and-down first year in Austin as he passed for 2,177 yards and 15 touchdowns in 10 starts. Texas finished 6-4 in Ewers’ 10 starts, having missed some time last season with an SC sprain, but the Longhorns and Ewers are expected to be improved this year.

Regardless of numbers — Ewers was given a full season as starting quarterback in Sarkisian’s system, which has a solid track record of success when retaining production. Bijan Robinson‘s jump from being good to great over the past two seasons is a perfect offensive example.

Pair Ewers with the likes of Xavier Worthy, AD Mitchell, Johntay Cook II and more out wide — and the former five-star quarterback has the pieces in place to become one of the top quarterbacks in the country in 2023.

“The repetition matters. I think the expertise in the system matters and historically for us, guys going into Year 2 in our system — which, we’re running an NFL offense. It’s the stuff we did in Atlanta with Matt Ryan and Julio Jones and those guys,” Sarkisian said. “Historically, going into Year 2, that’s when we really see that step. And all signs are pointing to that. That’s where Quinn’s going this year for us.”