Ewers had to decide whether to jump to professional football or make more money in college.
After three seasons as the starter for the Texas Longhorns, redshirt junior quarterback Quinn Ewers is declaring for the 2025 NFL Draft, his agent told ESPN on Wednesday.
Texas quarterback Quinn Ewers is declaring for the NFL draft, his agent Ron Slavin told ESPN. The decision ends a career at Texas that saw him go 21-5 as a starter the last two years revive and lead the Longhorns to the school’s only two CFP appearances. pic.twitter.com/JzsaBJ03qh
— Pete Thamel (@PeteThamel) January 15, 2025
View this post on InstagramA post shared by Quinn Ewers (@quinn_ewers)
The decision by Ewers comes after leading the Horns to the program’s only two College Football Playoff appearances in its history, as well as the team’s first conference title since 2009 and the SEC Championship game in its first year in the conference.
In the pre-NIL era, declaring for the draft would be an easy decision for Ewers, but the economics around college football have changed — the now-former Texas quarterback was reportedly offered $6 million by an opposing program to remain in college.
Before the loss to Ohio State in the Cotton Bowl, Ewers deflected questions about the report
“I’m just not worried about all that stuff,” Ewers said. “People can say all they want to say. But I’m just focused on Friday at this point in time.”
Now Ewers will turn his focus to the pre-draft process after leaving a complicated legacy on the Forty Acres.
One of the top prospects in the modern recruiting era, Ewers was the No. 1 recruit in the 2021 class even though he opted to re-classify in order to take advantage of NIL opportunities at Ohio State, where he enrolled after the start of preseason camp.
After a semester with the Buckeyes, Ewers entered the NCAA transfer portal and opted to join the Longhorns, fulfilling a lifelong dream and becoming a centerpiece of first-year head coach Steve Sarkisian’s rebuilding job at Texas.
Ewers won the starting job as a redshirt freshman and throwing for 9,128 yards and 68 touchdowns in burnt orange and white with a completion percentage of 64.9 percent and 24 interceptions.
From 2022 to 2023, Ewers showed clear improvement as the Horns vaulted to a 12-1 regular season, Big 12 title, and the school’s first-ever appearance in the College Football Playoff.
But after sustaining an oblique injury early in the season and an ankle injury late in the regular season, Ewers wasn’t able to continue that positive trajectory, seeing his interception rate jump to 2.7 percent amid calls from fans for his famous backup, Arch Manning, to receive more playing time.
Now it’s officially Manning’s program as NFL evaluators determine whether the arm talent of Ewers warrants a high selection in the draft or whether the flaw in his game will ultimate result in his stock falling.
