Quinn Ewers, Texas, had a better day at Vanderbilt than you might think

NASHVILLE, Tenn. — Quinn Ewers grabbed the final snap for the final kneel in Texas' 27-24 win over Vanderbilt on Saturday, celebrating the way one with national championship hopes does after a narrow win over Vanderbilt — as quickly and quietly as possible.

Ewers shook a few hands and exchanged a few pleasantries, particularly with Vandy counterpart and Nashville sports sensation Diego Pavia, then left the field at FirstBank Stadium. As he jogged toward the locker room behind him, the stands reminded him of the difference he faced.

A full, hearty Vanderbilt student group sang the school's alma mater with Commodores players and coaches, no small feat for this program, but they only made up a portion of the east side of the stadium. The rest were burnt orange and blaring the Texas fight song, drowning out the home fans.

This is what happens at Vanderbilt. There are no quality victories for opponents, not in several years. But that's exactly what it was. And Ewers was the best part. Yes, to be clear: Texas took a step toward a three-point win over Vanderbilt, while Ewers took a step despite Vanderbilt intercepting two of his passes. That's how strange this game was and that's how strange this season is.

“I think it's really a credit to him, even after last week's game,” Texas coach Steve Sarkisian said of Ewers, whose two picks were tipped and who was 27 of 35 for 288 yards and two touchdowns otherwise. “When doubt comes into our minds, it is fatal. And I don’t think he had the slightest doubt.”

One could argue that Sarkisian set the stage for doubt – internal and external – when he sacked Ewers late in the second half of last week's deflating 30-15 home loss to Georgia. Letting a quarterback sit and clear his head can sometimes be an effective strategy, but that's a harder sell when his replacement is the most popular person in Texas.

And what if Arch Manning hadn't looked like the young quarterback not yet ready for prime time, which would have made the quick switch back to Ewers obvious? We'll never know. Manning made his presence known Saturday most clearly through the No. 16 jerseys worn by some Texas fans. The controversy has calmed down for now.

If it comes back, that probably means Texas is dead. Ewers, who consistently stepped up in big games, always had the best chance to lead this team to a national championship. And that hope remains – despite a slap in the face from Georgia.

It's a week off, Florida, then Arkansas and Kentucky before No. 5 Texas (7-1, 3-1), before Texageddon or whatever you want to call it, the first meeting between the Horns and Aggies in 13 years .

Put them up 🤘⬆️ pic.twitter.com/BzMQHbu04h

— Texas Football (@TexasFootball) October 27, 2024

Texas needs to toughen up against Georgia and also learn from Nashville's mistakes. This didn't have to come down to a late touchdown pass from Pavia to force an onside kick. It could have been much more comfortable if there hadn't been a whopping 10 Texas penalties for 108 yards – several negating significant gains – and too many successful Vanderbilt pressures that resulted in four sacks.

No. 25 Vanderbilt (5-2, 2-2) never wanted to stop fighting, either, and the only thing that suggests otherwise is the word on the front of the Commodores jerseys. This team is not that history.

But the selection of Ewers was simply bad luck. After the first play, Pavia immediately made Texas pay by breaking free from the Longhorns' defense and electrifying the home fans (about 40 percent of the crowd?) with an 18-yard dash into the end zone to open the scoring. A dropped interception and stunning Pavia moves made it clear that the then number 1 was shocked. 1 Alabama three weeks earlier, and that feeling was in the air again.

So Ewers got the Longhorns even from 75 yards and topped it off by scoring on an out-cut to Matthew Golden. He then gave the Longhorns the go-ahead score of 49 yards, a nice 27-yard loft to DeAndre Moore Jr. with pressure on his face. They wouldn't chase again. And Ewers wouldn't throw another incompletion throw until it was 21-7 and he had scored 17 straight.

Texas needs to improve over the last month to be what it wants to be. It doesn't take much more than Saturday from Ewers, who appears to have finally overcome the oblique injury that cost him two games and has quickly put everything that last week could have done to him behind him.

“It was normal for us,” Moore, who rushed for 97 yards and two touchdowns, said of the Ewers’ perceived recovery.

“If he plays like that the rest of the year, we’ll be fine — we’ll just be fine,” Sarkisian said.

“It’s definitely a good feeling,” Ewers said. “You can get that confidence back. It’s definitely nice to put last week’s events behind us.”

“What happened” can be defined in different ways, at least when it comes to the quarterback shuffle, but not when it comes to Georgia physically beating Texas. To win a hypothetical rematch, the Longhorns would have to counter with better execution, starting with Ewers.

This was a performance to build on after 247Sports briefly and inaccurately reported for a week that Ewers would sit out the rest of the season to prepare for the NFL Draft. (247Sports claimed his account was hacked.)

“It was strange,” Ewers said of the report, and he’s not the only one.

Texas just won at Vanderbilt by three points, and that counts as a quality win in college football in 2024. That wasn't cause for celebration, but it wasn't cause for complaint either.

(Photo: Carly Mackler/Getty Images)