COLUMBUS, Ohio (WCMH) — Texas quarterback Quinn Ewers used to wear scarlet and gray. On Friday night at the Cotton Bowl, he saw a lot of it in his face.
Ewers was sacked three times in the first half, one of the reasons the Buckeyes took a 14-7 lead into the locker room. See a report on Cotton Bowl preparations in the video player above.
The Buckeyes’ JT Tuimoloau got to Ewers twice on the same first quarter series, dropping him for a 4-yard loss each time. In the second quarter, a Buckeyes blitz on third down sent Ewers back 10 yards, leading to a punt. Sonny Styles was in on the play, which led to a fumble that Texas recovered.
COLUMBUS, OH – SEPTEMBER 11: Quarterback Quinn Ewers #3 of the Ohio State Buckeyes warming up before the game between the Ohio State Buckeyes and the Oregon Ducks at Ohio Stadium in Columbus, Ohio on September 11, 2021. (Photo by Jason Mowry/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)
ARLINGTON, TEXAS – JANUARY 10: Quinn Ewers #3 of the Texas Longhorns drops back to pass in the first quarter against the Ohio State Buckeyes during the Goodyear Cotton Bowl at AT&T Stadium on January 10, 2025 in Arlington, Texas. (Photo by Sam Hodde/Getty Images)
But Ewers stabilized after that, and by halftime, he had completed 10 of 20 passes for 133 yards, including a touchdown. But keeping the pressure dialed up was key to the Buckeyes, who broke up four first-half passes and hurried two other throws, on the heels of sacking Oregon’s Dillon Gabriel eight times in their previous game, on Jan. 1 in the Rose Bowl.
Ewers’ journey took him from Texas to Ohio and back to Texas again, where he started for the Longhorns in Arlington, Texas, against the Buckeyes in a College Football Playoff semifinal. A star recruit out of San Antonio, he committed to Ohio State and coach Ryan Day, even graduating high school early so he could enroll in 2022.
In doing so, he became part of the developing debate over players being able to take advantage of their names, likenesses and images, allowing them to be paid while playing in college.
“One of the main things was that … the Texas Legislature wasn’t going to allow high school football players to be paid,” Ewers told reporters this week. “And me and my family had a pretty big opportunity in front of us that we felt that it was a good decision for me to go on and forgo my senior year and enroll early at Ohio State. And I have the opportunity to have some good money in our pockets as a family.”
He barely played for Ohio State as current Houston Texans quarterback C.J. Stroud started and was backed up by Kyle McCord. And eventually, the temptation to return home proved too strong for Ewers, especially after Texas hired Steve Sarkisian as coach.
“The reason that I came back to Texas was, one, to be closer to where I’m from and just closer to the resources that I have and the relationships that I’ve built over time just being from Texas,” Ewers said.
Entering the Cotton Bowl, Ewers had passed over 8,000 yards and 66 touchdowns in three seasons. The Longhorns had gotten progressively better during that time, improving from 5-7 the season before he arrived to going 12-2 in 2023 and 13-2 this season.
The Cotton Bowl winner will advance to face Notre Dame in college football’s national championship on Jan. 20. But no matter how it ends, this season is likely Ewers’ last for the Longhorns. Asked directly before the game by ESPN is he intends to play in the NFL next season, he answered yes.
