Steve Sarkisian downplays concerns of Quinn Ewers being 'injury-prone' in the future

For the third consecutive season, Quinn Ewers has missed multiple games due to injury. An abdominal strain has been the issue this go-round, causing him to miss matchups against Louisiana-Monroe and Mississippi State. Texas got through both with relative ease and is now trotting Ewers back out there for Saturday’s Red River Shootout against Oklahoma.

Ewers got injured against Alabama in 2022 with a clavicle issue before hurting his shoulder against Houston last season. This led Steve Sarkisian to ask if his quarterback is “injury-prone.” Sarkisian does not buy into the theory, saying injuries sometimes happen in football.

“I don’t necessarily think so,” Sarkisian said. “Sometimes injuries happen because they happen. When a guy gets piledrived onto their shoulder, there’s a pretty good chance it doesn’t matter who you are, your shoulder is going to be sore to some capacity or when you get piledrived and your clavicle get popped, I don’t know many guys that would have withstood that hit from Dallas Turner a couple years ago. That was an odd hit.”

Yes, Ewers has missed long stretches in each of the last two seasons but Sarkisian was quick to point out that his level of play has not dropped off once returning. Staying involved while sidelined has resulted in Ewers continuing to play at a high level once cleared to get back on the field.

“Things happen in football,” Sarkisian said. “Our sport is our sport. I think more importantly, they monitor his ability to come back and how he comes back and how he plays. I think Quinn has shown over his time that when he’s injured, he’s engaged, comes back, and he plays really good football coming off of injury. This to, to me, is another chance to show that he can do that moving forward.”

Ewers famously came back for the 2022 Red River Shootout and then last season against TCU. He completed 43 of 64 throws (67.2%) for 606 yards, five touchdowns, and two interceptions in those two games. Both were massive wins for Texas, at the time.

As Sarkisian mentioned, another opportunity is ahead of Ewers as he is set to return from his abdominal injury. A familiar opponent is on the other side too, hoping to take home his second Golden Hat.