Texas HC Steve Sarkisian compares Quinn Ewers to former NFL MVP

Texas quarterback Quinn Ewers is technically going into his redshirt sophomore season of college ball, but for head coach, Steve Sarkisian's purposes, 2022 was Ewers' true freshman year.

Ewers, the No. 1 overall recruit in the 2021 class, originally committed to Ohio State and took a redshirt year with the Buckeyes before transferring to Texas for 2022. 

He missed three games last season after a shoulder injury to his non-throwing shoulder, but still played in and started 10 for the Longhorns as a redshirt freshman — earning honorable mention for Big 12 Offensive Newcomer of the Year after throwing for 2,177 yards and 15 touchdowns with just six interceptions.

"I think you got to remember, his freshman year at college, he basically graduated high school early and went to Ohio State and then we got him in January. So we kind of felt like last year was his freshman year with us and there was some great moments and there was a few great games in there where he just played lights out. And then where were some growing pains and that’s part of playing the position," Sarkisian recently said of Ewers' development as a young college quarterback (per 247Sports).

The Texas head coach admitted that in an ideal situation, Ewers would have been able to sit behind an older quarterback to watch him make mistakes and learn — much like Arch Manning will be doing in 2023 — but Sarkisian felt the playing experience was "invaluable" for his starter.

Now with a true offseason under his belt and one more year of experience in Sarkisian's offense, it seems as if the expectations are sky-high. In fact, Sarkisian seems to think Ewers is on the same path in this offense that former NFL MVP Matt Ryan was on when Sarkisian was Ryan's offensive coordinator with the Atlanta Falcons.

"The repetition matters, the expertise in the system matters. Historically for us, guys going into year two in our system, which, we’re running an NFL offense. It’s the same stuff we did in Atlanta with Matt Ryan, Julio Jones and those guys. Historically going into year two, that’s when we really see that step and all signs are pointing to that’s where Quinn Ewers is going for us," Sarkisian said.

It wasn't the year Ryan won the NFL's MVP award (that was in 2016), but the second season of Sarkisian's stint in Atlanta saw a massive improvement in the numbers. Ryan went from 4,095 yards and 20 touchdowns (12 interceptions) in 2017 to 4,924 yards and 35 touchdowns (seven interceptions) in 2018.

It sounds like Sarkisian is expecting a similar jump for Ewers in 2023. If that's the case, the Longhorns could very well have a Heisman Trophy candidate on their hands when all is said and done.