Quinn Ewers and Arch Manning are two of Texas’ quarterbacks that will always come up in conversation. Joel Klatt, however, claims that there isn’t even a conversation scheduled regarding a real debate between the two. On Monday, Klatt spoke on the relationship between the two highly-touted quarterbacks in Austin when he appeared on “The Herd.” When it comes to Ewers, who is back to lead the Longhorns as one of the finest players in the nation on one of the best teams in the country, he finds it amusing that people only ever want to talk to him about Manning.
“Anytime I get asked about Texas by anybody that is not involved with the program, they all talk about Arch,” said Klatt. “Anytime I go to Texas and I’m around the program, all they talk about is Quinn Ewers.”
“Yes, that fascinates me. “Well, when’s Arch going to be ready?” is the question that everyone who questions me about Texas asks. I travel to Texas and have conversations with Quinn Ewers, Steve Sarkisian, and the athletes. When I speak with anyone there, Quinn Ewers comes up in conversation. They only discuss that, according to Klatt. “He is their man!” I believe that’s something that people need to fully digest. He is going to be a strong contender for the Heisman Trophy. He is among the factors that will once again make them one of the top teams in the nation. To be clear, Manning isn’t diminished in any way by this attitude.
“I think that there is an overblown perception of how close the quarterback battle is. That doesn’t mean Arch isn’t good because he is,” said Klatt. “There’s a good chance that, at some point, he’s going to have to play. Ewers has been hurt in his career, they’re going to blow some people out. By the way, you’re going to have to play 16 games, you know. Like, the season is lengthening out. There’s a good chance that all of these backups at all of these schools are going to have to play.”
In their first season together, Ewers was the full-time starter while Manning was third on the depth chart behind Maalik Murphy.
Ewers, a sophomore last fall, would throw for nearly 3,500 yards to go with 22 touchdowns and six picks on 69% completion. That production would help Texas to a 12-2 record overall in their best finish in years as they won the Big 12 and made the College Football Playoff.
As for Manning as a freshman, he appeared in a pair of games. He completed two of his five throws for 30 yards in a blowout against Texas Tech in the season finale. He also closed out some the final moments of the Big 12 Championship against Oklahoma State.
Now, with Murphy transferring out, Ewers will return as QB1 with Manning likely taking the step up to QB2.
Teams could do a lot worse than having two quarterbacks who were the top quarterback recruit and top overall prospect in their respective classes. It’s just not as much of a deliberation as many make it out to be per Klatt.
