State of the Program: Quinn Ewers confident and growing; positions battles to watch
On the latest video episode of On Texas Football’s State of the Program, Inside Texas’s Gerry Hamilton and Eric Nahlin break down the first week of Longhorns’ preseason camp with an update on each position and a report as Texas has its first padded practice.
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The duo went over the progress of the Texas offense, with Nahlin, the publisher of InsideTexas.com, beginning by saying the Longhorns are happy with the progress of sophomore Quinn Ewers at quarterback.
“The main thing I’ve heard is that maturation by Ewers that we’ve covered throughout the offseason,” Nahlin said. “I think that’s been obvious. The progress has been carried over to the field. You know, he’s just a lot more comfortable. He’s a lot more in control of the position than in the past and way more confident than it was a year before.
“Ewers can be loose with his offensive lineman and walk around joke and patting them on the ass like Joe Montana before a big drive. But he also knows when to get everybody in line if they’re not or if he doesn’t think they’re focused enough. So he’s really struck a balance so far.”
Nahlin said Ewers’ accuracy with his downfield passing has improved.
“We get asked about that quite a bit and I think it has improved pretty considerably,” Nahlin explained. “However in the scrimmage portions every yard is tough to gain in the passing game because the corners are doing such a good job. He is a more consistent passer but it’s not a perfect. We need some data from scrimmages when they go live to see as mechanics hold up under duress.”
Hamilton opined that the starting running back position in Jonathon Brooks’ to win but said battle for playing time behind Brooks could come down to situations.
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“Brooks pretty much has to starting position on lockdown – I think we both agree on that,” Hamilton said. “But this camp is more about the young guy CJ Baxter, right, and what are they introducing to him that maybe they didn’t in the spring. And for getting the rest of the backs ready for multiple roles this season.”
Hamilton said one of the most interesting things to watch for in camp is the competition at guard, where Texas has a bevy of quality options.
“The beauty of depth that you can hold players accountable,” Nahlin added. “I think (the line is) still a year away from being truly dominant, but I think they’re gonna progressively get better, particularly on the inside as the season wears on. Cohesion is a big part of offensive line and the one thing with the rotation is that it might hurt cohesion a little bit.”
The duo examines every position on the team so go check out the rest of the video for a lot more information and insight.
