Texas QB Quinn Ewers Called Players-Only Meeting: 'That's Different!'

Texas Longhorns quarterback Quinn Ewers asked head coach Steve Sarkisian if he could run a players-only meeting after a recent practice.

Dec 2, 2023; Arlington, TX, USA; Texas Longhorns quarterback Quinn Ewers (3) reacts with the WWE Big 12 championship belt after the win against the Oklahoma State Cowboys at AT&T Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Kevin Jairaj-USA TODAY Sports / Kevin Jairaj-USA TODAY Sports

AUSTIN -- Quinn Ewers is taking his leadership skills to the next level ahead of his third season on the Forty Acres.

Steve Sarkisian revealed during Monday's media availability that the Texas Longhorns star quarterback called a players-only meeting following a recent practice, something that the head coach admitted he "never got" from Ewers the past two seasons.

"I want to say it was either Thursday or Friday of last week. We got off the practice field, was probably Thursday, and I'd gotten a text from Quinn, I don't know, maybe 30 minutes or so after practice," Sarkisian said. "We have a team meeting the next day, I think at 2:45 or something, he said, 'Coach, you mind if we have a players-only meeting at 2:35?' and I had never got that from Quinn, right?"

Texas Longhorns head coach Steve Sarkisian talks with Texas Longhorns quarterback Quinn Ewers (3) during a timeout in the first half of an NCAA college football game, Saturday, Sept. 2, 2023, in Austin, Texas. / Ricardo B. Brazziell/American-Statesman / USA TODAY NETWORK

The Longhorns have had an abundance of leaders on both sides of the ball over the past two seasons, which has allowed the often soft-spoken Ewers to steadily mold his leadership abilities headed into Year 3 as the starting quarterback. Sarkisian said that the team has had players-only meetings before, though they were led by former Longhorns now currently in the NFL

"In years past that might have been Jordan (Whittington) or Jaylan Ford or one of those guys, but for Quinn to be the guy that was calling the players only meeting, I thought in that moment ... that this guy is really stepping up and saying, 'hey, I want to have this meeting. I want to talk about two or three things with the guys to make sure that we're really dialed in.' And so I know that his rapport with his teammates is tremendous right now. I know they look up to him with very high regard. ... For me as the head coach, the fact that he's calling that meeting, that's different. That hasn't happened the past couple years."

When meeting with the media via Zoom last week, Ewers admitted that he has no choice but to be a leader on this team due to the "shoes that [he] has to wear" as the starting quarterback.

"At the quarterback position, I really don't have a choice but to be a leader of this team. That's just kind of the shoes that I have to wear," Ewers said. "I had to learn that. And for sure, it didn't come easy for me at first. I had to learn ways to get to my teammates and kind of find ways to be able to fire them up and kind of figure out what makes them tick, and I think that's been the biggest thing for me, is just the relationships that I've built that have helped me become a better leader for the team."

Ewers, who missed out on being a Preseason AP All-American Monday, finished last season having gone 272 of 394 passing for 3,479 yards and 22 touchdowns against six interceptions. He showed off his sneaky ability as a runner by adding five rushing touchdowns as the Longhorns won the Big 12 Championship and clinched a College Football Playoff berth with a 12-1 record.

He sat out two contests due to injury last season, bringing his total missed games up to five during his time as a Longhorn. Ewers will look to end that trend and remain healthy for the entire season once No. 4 Texas kicks things off against Colorado State at home on Saturday, Aug. 31.