Texas QB depth chart without Quinn Ewers: Do Longhorns need Arch Manning insurance?

Rather than testing his chances in the transfer portal and staying in college for another season, Quinn Ewers has decided to enter the NFL Draft a year ahead of time. Ewers would've been due a sizable NIL pay day, but in some cases players only get one shot to live out their NFL dreams. In what's widely considered a weak quarterback class in 2025, it's not a huge surprise that Ewers would like his odds.

For Texas, Ewers leaving for the NFL was probably the best-case scenario. Now, they don't have to worry about a pro-ready QB signing with an SEC rival, which was very much on the table had he not gone pro. Say what you want about the Ewers-Manning debate, were he not playing for Texas, the former would be valued more by just about any fanbase and rightly so.

Manning, meanwhile, has waited his turn and looked the part of Peyton and Eli's nephew when he's gotten the call. Those opportunities were few and far between when Ewers was healthy, but Manning performed well when asked, especially in games against Texas-San Antonio, Louisiana-Monroe and most importantly Mississippi State. Otherwise, he's primarily been a change of pace threat in the Longhorns rushing attack.

Texas QB depth chart suggests they need some help behind Arch Manning

In the modern college football era, it's normal for top-tier programs to rebuild their quarterback rooms on the fly. The same can be said about Texas heading into the 2025 season, but here is what the depth chart looks like as of this writing without Ewers.

With Ewers off the board, expect Sarkisian to try to add a veteran backup via the transfer portal. While Owens was a four-star recruit, asking him to come off the bench in place of Manning due to an injury isn't a pleasant thought for Texas fans at this juncture.

Tatum, meanwhile, hasn't seen the field much at all in Austin and likely won't be the primary backup on a College Football Playoff-caliber team next season.

Don't get me wrong, Manning is more than capable of leading the Longhorns back to the Playoff and then some, but his play style can be reckless at times, and any true dual-threat quarterback often has to learn that lesson the hard way. In the event Manning is forced to miss snaps in 2025 – especially if that comes against SEC competition – Sarkisian would rather have a veteran to turn to that he can trust. Right now, it doesn't seem like that's the case.