Left: Texas Longhorns quarterback Quinn Ewers (3) is fired up as he celebrates tight end Gunnar Helm’s diving second quarter touchdown against the Oklahoma Sooners in the Red River Rivalry at the Cotton Bowl in Dallas, October 12, 2024. Credit: Tom Fox via TNS. Right: Head coach Ryan Day speaks to the media following the No. 8 Buckeyes’ 41-21 victory over No. 1 Oregon in the Rose Bowl Wednesday. Credit: Carly Damon | Asst. Photo Editor
Although it’s not the usual Buckeye rivalry, the Ohio State-Texas Cotton Bowl is four years in the making.
Then-Alabama offensive coordinator Steve Sarkisian accepted the Texas head coach position Jan. 2, 2021, but remained with the Crimson Tide for nine more days to coordinate the Alabama offense that demolished the Buckeyes in the National Championship Jan 11.
Following this curtain call, Sarkisian was off to Austin and tasked with turning around a Texas program that had fallen from grace. Although the Longhorns went 5-7 in his first year, Sarkisian’s arrival undoubtedly gave the program some juice. This reinvigoration was especially important for recruiting, which is heavily influenced by momentum within programs.
Prior to Sarkisian, the Texas program had been in a state of tedium. The innate prospect of going to Texas was no longer convincing enough, even for kids who grew up wearing Longhorn hats. One such kid was Quinn Ewers.
Ewers was a once-in-a-generation recruit. The early 2000s had Vince Young. The 2010s had Trevor Lawrence. Ewers was seen as the quarterback prospect of the 2020s.
Though he initially committed to Texas in 2020, Ewers flipped to Ohio State a few months later. Texas missed on him, in its own backyard, because of how the program was publicly perceived. This changed when Sarkisian arrived.
After Ewers completed his first season at Ohio State, he could read the tea leaves. Buckeyes head coach Ryan Day did not care about recruiting rankings, Ewers’ multimillion-dollar NIL deals or his internet fame. At Ohio State, Ewers was nothing more than the most famous fourth-string quarterback in the country.
Day, who is largely a quarterbacks coach with NFL experience, did not seem swayed by the fact that Ewers was so highly touted. And if Ewers was not going to be contributing anytime soon, all the things attached to his fame arguably did more harm than good.
Day seemed satisfied with 2021 starting quarterback C.J. Stroud’s first season, and Kyle McCord was another five-star recruit who had been patiently waiting in the wings before Ewers even arrived. Day certainly did not show a player of Ewers’ talent the door, but he did not exactly fight for him to stay, either.
After barely touching the field in Columbus, Ewers decided to return home and become a Longhorn Dec. 12, 2021.
“He was in a very unique situation, for sure,” Day said in a Dec. 5, 2021, press conference. “We certainly wish him nothing but the best of luck.”
When Ewers transferred, the future of both programs shifted. For Ohio State, the long-term outlook at quarterback became uncertain, as Ewers had often been viewed as Stroud’s successor. For Texas, it was a game-changing win, bringing the hometown star back to lead the program into a new era.
Ewers turned the 5-7 Longhorns into perennial playoff contenders. The Longhorns were a play away from a National Championship appearance last year, and only the Buckeyes stand in their way this season.
So, Ewers pioneered a turnaround for Texas, but what about Ohio State? In the era of these superstar quarterbacks, the Buckeyes have seemingly found their succession plan in a three-star recruit, redshirt senior from Downingtown, Pennsylvania.
Though Texas found its program savior, Ohio State opted for a glue-guy. And Will Howard is a great one.
Day’s first succession plan for Stroud struck out. McCord, though talented, was too inexperienced as a starter to elevate the Buckeyes. With much of the roster’s foundation returning for another year, Day recognized that a superstar quarterback wasn’t needed and took a chance on Howard.
Though the journey has not been entirely smooth, the Buckeyes are still standing. On Jan. 10, they will face Sarkisian, Ewers and the Longhorns, with a trip to the National Championship on the line.
College football is largely about projection. A head coach’s job depends on projecting how good an 18-year-old will be in a number of years. The best coaches are the strongest visionaries.
And Jan. 10, one coach’s vision will be realized.
