Friday evening, Texas will take charge Ohio State in the Cotton Bowl, with an appearance in the College Football Playoffs championship match at stake.
If the Longhorns lose, this could very well be the final game of their starting quarterback’s college career.
In an interview with ESPN’s Pete ThamelTexas quarterback Quinn Ewers said he doesn’t expect to play college football next year, offering some clarity to rampant speculation about the hottest position at one of the powerhouse programs sports.
MANDATORY READING: Texas football: QB Quinn Ewers addresses report of $6M transfer offer
Ewers has been the Longhorns’ starter in each of the last three seasons and has one more season of eligibility remaining, if he chooses to use it.
This season, he completed 66.5% of his passes for 3,189 yards, 29 touchdowns and 11 interceptions while leading his team to a 13-2 record and an appearance in the semifinals. Many of his biggest stats are worse than they were in 2023, when he completed 69% of his passes for 3,479 yards, 22 touchdowns and six interceptions and helped guide the Longhorns to a championship Big 12 and their first College Football Playoff appearance.
Interest in Ewers’ future comes from several different angles.
If he enters the 2025 NFL Draft, as he apparently indicated to ESPN, he is widely considered one of the top quarterbacks in the class. If he stays in college, however, the question arises whether he will retain the starting job at Texas, where redshirt freshman and former five-star recruit Arch Manning served as his backup over the past two seasons, or whether he would enter the transfer portal, where he would immediately become one of the most sought-after quarterbacks available.
MANDATORY READING: Texas football coach Steve Sarkisian once led another team to a victory in the Cotton Bowl.
On December 31, On3 Sports reported that Ewers was offered a $6 million name, image and likeness transfer deal. The report, which cites anonymous sources, does not name the specific schools courting Ewers.
“I think it’s selfish of me to think about it or watch it,” Ewers said earlier this week before the Cotton Bowl. “I owe my teammates the best version of myself right now. I can’t look forward or I’ll trip over the rock right in front of me. I have to be focused on what’s next. found here.”
Ewers entered the college game with no shortage of hype. He was the No. 1 recruit nationally in the 2021 recruiting class, according to 247 Sportsand is one of the highest-rated quarterback prospects in the history of recruiting sites.
The Southlake, Texas native began his college career at Ohio State, where he became one of the first college athletes to hold a known NIL contract. He spent a season serving as CJ Stroud’s backup with the Buckeyes before transferring after the 2021 season and committing to Texas.
This article was originally published on USA TODAY: Texas quarterback Quinn Ewers doesn’t expect to play college football next year
