AUSTIN, Texas — Meeting with the media on Monday for the first time in weeks, Texas Longhorns redshirt junior quarterback Quinn Ewers was asked to assess his performance this season. Ewers demurred.
“I mean, we’re 9-1, I’m pretty excited about that,” Ewers said.
As the national conversation surrounding the No. 3 Longhorns has focused on the team’s strength of schedule and lack of wins over top teams, a large portion of the Texas fan base has spent this week in varying stages of meltdown about Ewers throwing for just 172 yards on 32 pass attempts in the 20-10 win over Arkansas in Fayetteville.
The discourse surrounding Ewers also prompted a question about whether he feels appreciated by Longhorns fans.
“Do I feel appreciated? Yeah, I think so. They’re passionate, for sure, but yeah, feel good about it,” Ewers said.
On Thursday, Texas head coach Steve Sarkisian broke off from answering a question about what his quarterback is going through to send a message to the fanbase.
“I tell this to all Longhorn Nation — we’re 9-1 for the second year in a row, we’re competing for a conference championship for the second year in a row. We’re competing for a spot in the College Football Playoff for the second year in a row. Don’t forget what the last decade looked like. Let’s just remember how good we’ve got it right now and appreciate this team for how good they’re playing right now,” Sarkisian said.
How’s that for perspective?