Quinn Ewers rode the line between hurt and injured during the 2024 season

A phrase often used by hardass coaches when their players complain about an ailment may be as old as the game of football itself: are you hurt or are you injured?

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“Hurt” means uncomfortable, and maybe with a certain part of the body causing pain. But the pain and the damage done is not enough to remove oneself from game action whether due to discomfort or lack of effectiveness.

“Injured” means there is no way to continue. Either the damage is too much, or the effectiveness is dampened to where the backup is needed.

On Friday, Texas quarterback Quinn Ewers explained at the NFL Scouting Combine that he played hurt for most of the year.

Ewers left Texas’ September 14 win over UTSA with what Longhorns head coach Steve Sarkisian described as an abdominal strain. In recent days, reports have surfaced that say Ewers actually played through a torn oblique during the 2024 season and that tear was sustained during a week two matchup with Michigan.

“The oblique, it started popping up on me the Monday after we played Michigan,” Ewers said at the NFL Scouting Combine on Friday. “I thought it was a little tweak. Throughout practice it got worse and worse and worse. Obviously, it popped against UTSA. I would probably say I played two games, maybe three games healthy counting the first two then maybe one in between the ankle and the oblique.”

He’d later add: “They labeled it as a sprain, but it didn’t feel like just a sprain.”

Ewers’ injured status cost him most of the UTSA game and ensuing contests versus Louisiana-Monroe and Mississippi State. He returned still hurt versus Oklahoma and was 20-for-29 for 199 yards with one touchdown, one interception, and a rushing touchdown that almost seemed like a challenge from Sarkisian.

It was evident Ewers wasn’t at 100 percent in the weeks following, missing a number of deep passes and even making mistakes that harkened back to his first year at Texas. All the while, Arch Manning earned more opportunities starting with the first Georgia game.

Ewers’ health improved over the course of late October and early November, but it hit another roadblock versus Kentucky. Ewers was taken down by a hip-drop tackle that gave him an ankle issue he dealt with for most of the rest of the season.

Pair a poor base with a troublesome oblique, and there’s no doubt Ewers had to play hurt all year.

Sarkisian never wavered in sticking with Ewers, nor did Ewers waver in his effort. Ewers’ five-yard touchdown run in the fourth quarter of Texas’ win over Arizona State was the best example of his grit, while his 28-yard touchdown pass to Matthew Golden on 4th-and-13 in overtime of that game was the best evidence of his poise.

To do all that with several physical ailments, a condition not unique to the quarterback position, requires certain mental attributes. Ewers believes he’ll be able to show those attributes at the combine, as well as his ability to throw the football with precision.

“I believe that mental toughness is a huge aspect for the quarterback position,” Ewers said. “I’d rank it in the top three for sure. I think to play this position, you go through a lot of adversity on the field and sometimes off the field whether that’s in the locker room or whatever that is. I feel that it’s very important.”

Ewers’ goes through position drills and testing on Saturday at the NFL Scouting Combine. He’s already met with a number of teams, including some that may decide to spend an early-round pick on a quarterback.

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He believes everything that he went through at Texas, all his seemingly yearly ailments, prepared him for success in Indianapolis and at the next level.

“I went through a lot in my career at Texas, whether it be injuries or other things like that” Ewers said. “I think I wouldn’t trade anything because it made me who I am today. It built my character to where I am today.”