Arch Manning, Quinn Ewers to Compete for Texas QB Job, HC Steve Sarkisian Says

The future might be now for the Texas Longhorns.

Head football coach Steve Sarkisian told reporters following the team's first practice Monday that the quarterback position is an open competition between sophomore Quinn Ewers and freshman Arch Manning.

"I'm not worried about who's going to be on the cover of what magazine next week," Sarkisian said. "I'm more focused on: Is each guy focusing on what they need to do to develop to be the best player that they can be? Quinn has an entire year of a head start, but I don't want to hold Arch back. I want to see how far he can take this thing and what it can look like."

There will be no shortage of headlines when it comes to this position battle.

After all, Manning is the nephew of legendary quarterbacks Peyton and Eli Manning and comes with the hype of being the No. 1-ranked prospect in the 2023 class, per 247Sports' composite rankings.

The recruiting ranking is a position Ewers can relate to, as he was the No. 1 player in the 2021 class before committing to Ohio State and then transferring to Texas.

Ewers has the experience advantage after starting for Texas last season and completing 58.1 percent of his passes for 2,177 yards and 15 touchdowns with six interceptions. The numbers weren't particularly great, and he threw for fewer than 200 yards in six of his 10 games, including the final four of the regular season.

However, he seemed to have turned the corner in an Alamo Bowl loss to Washington with 369 yards and one touchdown through the air.

"I think what he's done, he's serving for Arch and, 'Hey, this is what it looks like,'" Sarkisian said, noting Ewers is more vocal this offseason. "'And this is how to go about your business.'"

The quarterback at Texas is always under a lot of pressure, but that will be the case even more so than usual at the start of the 2023 campaign with star running back Bijan Robinson off to the NFL and a showdown at Alabama looming for the Longhorns' second game.

That matchup only elevates the need for the team to get off to a quick start without much of a learning curve at the quarterback position, which could give an edge to Ewers.

Manning, however, could be too talented to keep off the field.