Quinn Ewers leads a tight, talented quarterback room

Quarterback competitions were the leading storylines in Steve Sarkisian‘s first two training camps as head coach of the Longhorns. In 2021, he oversaw a battle between Hudson Card and Casey Thompson that saw Card win the job in the preseason but cede the spot to Thompson after game two. Sarkisian’s second camp featured Card battling Ohio State transfer Quinn Ewers, with Ewers winning the starting job.

[Join Inside Texas for just $1 or get 25% off an annual subscription!]

Card is now at Purdue, and Thompson, after a stint at Nebraska, is with former Texas head coach Tom Herman at Florida Atlantic.

Meanwhile in Austin, Ewers was named the starter in the spring.

The once-mulletted but now buzz-cut quarterback made significant strides during the spring and summer, something apparent in that Sarkisian was willing to hand him the reins in April without a competition with Maalik Murphy or Arch Manning in August. That growth was not only in on-field aspects but off-the-field areas as well. The leadership development was made obvious when Ewers was selected to lead the team in “Horn Jacks,” where the players spell out “Horns” with a jumping jack for each letter before heading to their first drills of the day.

In the two-plus hours after, Ewers performed up to Sarkisian’s standard for the position.

“I thought the pass game was really good today,” Sarkisian said. “I thought Quinn played really, really well, one of the better practices he’s had since I’ve been here.”

Sarkisian was pressed to explain what made Ewers’ debut training session one he was pleased with.

“I just think the ball was coming out timely,” Sarkisian said. “When we got a little off-schedule, he moved really well in the pocket and kept his vision up downfield. Was able to make throws off-platform on the move, which was something that we’ve really been working on in the offseason coming off of last year. When things weren’t there, he was finding completions and he was finding checkdowns. Inevitably, it was a clean practice for him.”

Murphy and Manning are competing throughout preseason camp to be Ewers’ backup. Both brought with them to the field things they had worked on since the last time the team put on football equipment of any kind in April.

“I thought Maalik and Arch both took strides from spring to training camp, which was really encouraging. I was proud of the work they did,” Sarkisian said.

With 14 stars worth of quarterback at the top of AJ Milwee‘s position group, one Sarkisian calls the most important in sports, that’s a lot of skill and even personality within one room. But there’s only one quarterback on the field at a time, and players with the talent of Ewers, Murphy, and Manning all believe they are worthy of snaps.

Even with the spirited competition, the Texas quarterback room has maintained a tight bond per Sarkisian. That was something revealed recently in one of Murphy’s social media posts, and also one from the official Texas football account.

Summer conditioning ✅

Ready for fall camp 🤘 pic.twitter.com/wyBjd6LPXj

— Texas Football (@TexasFootball) July 28, 2023

According to Sarkisian, each quarterback is on their own journey. In addition, each has been supported at every step by their teammates.

“When we work with the quarterbacks, what we ask each quarterback to do is focus on what we’re asking you to work on and don’t worry about what the other guy’s working on,” Sarkisian said. “Everybody’s at a different stage. Everybody’s got their own strengths, their own weaknesses, and how we’re developing them. We try to learn from one another, but focus on what you need to work on and not what the other guy is working on.

“The second thing we ask of them is to be a great teammate. How do you support the other guys? Because they hear the other guys getting coached, so how do you support them? The best quarterback rooms I’ve been in, there’s been great rapport whether it’s the starter, the backup, the third string guy, maybe the fourth string guy who is probably not going to get in but he’s got a great feel and rapport with the guys in the room. Charles (Wright) has that, too.

“I think when they go through the process of this and they appreciate how hard each guy is working and when they see a guy make the improvement on something he’s working on and they’re building each other up, then you see those types of pictures.”

Sarkisian doted on Murphy and Manning, not letting Ewers absorb all the praise.

[Sign up NOW for the Inside Texas newsletter for Texas Longhorns daily updates and breaking news in your inbox!]

“Maalik’s got a great personality,” Sarkisian said. “He’s a very personable guy. The guys really enjoy him. I think he’s brought out a lot of personality in Quinn. Arch has a great personality as well.”

Competition brings out the best. According to Sarkisian, the Longhorn quarterbacks are enjoying playing football with one another.

“I think the guys have a lot of fun working together, and that’s what it’s all about,” Sarkisian said.