Longhorns QB Quinn Ewers 'Good Game' Won't Be Enough To Take Down Alabama

Quinn Ewers didn't need to be a superstar Saturday against the Owls, but he'll have to improve to defeat Alabama.

Colorado quarterback Shedur Sanders threw for a school record of 510 yards and four touchdowns in his Buffaloes' debut, leading Deion Sanders' squad to the season's biggest upset over No. 17 TCU. 

Washington's Michael Penix Jr. unloaded moonshots downfield in a five-touchdown day to secure the Huskies' victory over Boise State. 

USC's Caleb Williams once again made the social media craze formerly known as Twitter blow up with several jaw-dropping plays in a five-touchdown outing against Nevada. 

And Texas' Quinn Ewers? He played a football game, a game he won over Rice to start the year off on the right note in front of fans at Royal-Memorial Stadium

He wasn't a world-class beater. Accuracy and timing saw dips throughout the nights. He found the end zone three times, but a quicker release or a more regulated survey of the field could have led to better numbers. 

Sure, the Longhorns didn't need Ewers to be Weapon X like Sanders and Penix. The Horned Frogs were last year's national champion runner-ups. The Broncos are the favorites to win the Mountain West. 

Ewers didn't light up the stat sheet or have that "wow" moment to set AP voters ablaze and put Heisman voters on watch. He also didn't have to against a program that's won 16 games in six seasons. 

But he will have to be the answer next week in Tuscaloosa against No. 4 Alabama, who handled business against Middle Tennessee State under new QB Jalen Milroe. 

He'll have to shine in the Red River Showdown against Oklahoma, which curbstomped Arkansas State 73-0 in their final home opener as members of the Big 12.

Against Kansas State? Versus TCU? When facing Texas Tech? Yup, Ewers will have to be better. 

For Texas to be viewed as a national title contender, Ewers' scrappy but successful outing Saturday must improve. Good won't be good enough against teams in October and November. 

"There's definitely some things I'm gonna learn from the film, obviously, but it was it was good to get back out there and compete against someone else," Ewers said postgame. 

Not all fault falls on Ewers' shoulders in a 37-10 victory over the Owls. Texas went 6-of-15 on third-down conversions and 0-of-6 to begin the afternoon. The offensive line was a turnstile for Rice defensive linemen to add pressure in the first half. 

Not to mention, the offense was looking for its new lead back now that Bijan Robinson and Roschon Johnson are off enjoying their next adventures in the pros. Jonathon Brooks looks locked for one-half of the duo, but his running mate still remains a mystery. 

As Ewers put it, the offense was shaky in the first half, but found an identity in the final 30 minutes. The sophomore tossed three touchdowns, two coming in the second half. He connected with Jordan Whittington on a crosser for a 26-yard gain and later zipped a quick-hitter to Ja'Tavion Sanders, who turned upfield for a 44-yard score. 

“We were able to settle in and kind of reset back in the locker room and just kind of catch our breath,” Ewers said. “I think we were doing a lot of things wrong mentally. We just had self-inflicted wounds that we fixed in the locker room. I’m super proud of how we came out in the second half.”

Ewers has a reason to be proud of the locker room's resilience and poise. The Owls also were lucky to hang around in the first half after former five-star QB J.T. Daniels tossed two early interceptions. 

Alabama won't play nice when the Longhorns struggle. Neither will Oklahoma or Kansas State. Nick Saban is looking for national title No. 8, Brent Venables is looking to silence the doubters and Chris Klieman is looking to make the Wildcats the new flagship of the Big 12. 

Do you think they're looking to give the Longhorns a mulligan?  

“I trust in our guys,” Sarkisian said. “These guys have proven to me what they're capable of doing. At the end of the day, we need to be aggressive."

Ewers finished 19-of-30 for 260 passing yards to match the trio of touchdowns. His short stuff was promising. His deep ball wasn't. 

Ewers finished 0-of-4 on throws 20-plus yards downfield. He missed a wide-open Xavier Worthy in the first quarter, then overthrew Sanders twice in the second. Sarkisian can't dial back from trying to go deep, at least not until a run game is fully established. 

"We’re getting closer,” Sarkisian said. “It’s going to feel good when we do hit them. We have to do it because we have to be able to make people defend all three layers of the field — the line of scrimmage, that intermediate throw, then that deep throw.”

This offseason, Ewers admitted he needed to make daily changes. He cut out fast food and cut off his trademark mullet. He traded in a few hours of film study for a few more sessions in the weight room.

The result? A gunslinger drawing first-round buzz that's ready to be the quarterback Texas fans have prayed for since the days of Colt McCoy. 

Everyone has "that one" performance. Maybe Sanders' career day up in Cowtown is a one-hit wonder? Who knows if Texas State's TJ Finley's heroic performance in a victory over Baylor will translate into a winning season for the Bobcats?

But Ewers' "good" outing needs to be a one-and-done. Great games are planned ahead — games that could determine Texas' status as a legitimate playoff contender. 

Games like the one that kicks off six days from now in Titletown.