Texas Longhorns quarterback Quinn Ewers named to Manning Award watch list

Texas Longhorns quarterback Quinn Ewers has been named to the preseason Manning Award watch list for the second season, which honors the nation’s top college quarterback. It’s the only award that takes into account candidates’ bowl performances.

If Ewers wins the award, he would join Vince Young and Colt McCoy as the only Longhorns to take home the honor.

Ewers is entering his fourth year in college and third in Austin, racking up more than 5,600 yards and 37 touchdowns in his two seasons as a starter. The quarterback likely wasn’t a top choice for last year’s award, but the gunslinger had a solid 2023 where he led Texas to a Big 12 championship, a College Football Playoff appearance and more passing yards per game than all but eight Power Five quarterbacks.

Ewers, though, is firmly in the running for the award in 2024. DraftKings Sportsbook has Ewers as the third-best odds to win the Heisman Trophy, something LSU’s Jayden Daniels did last year when he won the Manning Award. Of the eight quarterbacks mentioned who had more passing yards per game than Ewers in 2023, only three remain in college football, with Colorado’s Shedeur Sanders the only one who stayed with the same program.

In terms of adjusted yards per pass attempt, a statistic that weights touchdowns and interceptions to give each pass attempt a quarterback makes a yardage value, Ewers is just one of nine returning quarterbacks at the five who are above nine, a figure often used to cut off the nation’s top passer. Ewers also threw the second-most passes of that group, meaning players like Alabama’s Jalen Milroe could see some regression with more passes attempted.

Another factor in Ewers’ favor is the potential lack of an elite ground game following C.J. Baxter’s injury. While Baxter’s season-ending LCL injury is a big loss for the Longhorns, it helps Ewers work toward awards like the Manning or Heisman. Sarkisian will ask Ewers to make more important throws than he has in the past due to the team’s lack of depth at running back, and his collection of new pass catchers will surely keep him near the top of many passing metrics.