It’s official. Quinn Ewers is back.
No. 1 Texas coach Steve Sarkisian said Thursday that its senior quarterback would return to the starting lineup Saturday against No. 19 Oklahoma. Ewers has missed more than two games since leaving Texas’ first-half win over UTSA in Week 3 with an abdominal strain.
Sarkisian’s announcement isn’t really a surprise. Ewers was reportedly on track to start this week after Texas was off in Week 6 and he was listed as probable on the school’s Wednesday injury report. The Longhorns enter the game as 13.5-point favorites against a Sooners team missing at least four of its top receivers.
Arch Manning took over for Ewers against UTSA and rushed for a TD while throwing four more. He wasn’t as electric in his two starts against Louisiana-Monroe and Mississippi State, but was still more than competent as the Longhorns moved to 5-0.
Texas climbed to No. 1 in the AP Top 25 on Sunday thanks to Alabama’s loss at Vanderbilt. The Longhorns stayed ahead of Ohio State despite the Buckeyes’ big home win over Iowa.
Ewers is 58 of 79 playing more than two games this season and has thrown for 691 yards and eight touchdowns to just two interceptions. His early-season stats match his production from a season ago, when Texas won the Big 12 and made the College Football Playoff for the first time. Ewers was given the opportunity to enter the 2024 NFL Draft, but announced after the season that he would return for a third season in Austin after transferring from Ohio State.
After playing Oklahoma in Dallas on Saturday, Texas hosts No. 5 Georgia in Week 8 before a trip to Vanderbilt to close out October.
