Texas WR's Blunt Take on Arch Manning and Quinn Ewers' Throws May Spark Controversy

Texas WR's Blunt Take on Arch Manning and Quinn Ewers' Throws May Spark Controversy originally appeared on Athlon Sports.

In one of the better passing of the batons at the quarterback position in recent college football history, the Texas Longhorns have the luxury of replacing former No. 1 overall recruit Quinn Ewers, with Arch Manning, who also held the top ranking in his class.

Fans had been calling for Manning, who is the grandson of New Orleans Saints Ring of Honor member Archie Manning and the nephew of two-time Super Bowl-winning quarterbacks Peyton and Eli Manning, to replace Ewers throughout Texas' College Football Playoff run in 2024.

With the youngest Manning at the helm in Austin, media members have been quick to ask what the differences are between the two quarterbacks.

Something that wide receiver DeAndre Moore provided some insight on when speaking to the media after practice on Thursday.

"Quinn's were a little bit more of a pillow, little bit of a cushion, kinda loft in there" Moore said. "Arch is zipping that thing in there, getting it to you."

While Ewers departed Texas as one of the programs most accomplished quarterbacks in program history, fans frequently questioned why he never seemed to utilize his arm strength that he had shown at times.

Quinn Ewers' Injuries Led to Less Velocity

During the 2024 college football season, Ewers strained his oblique a couple of games into the season, which makes it difficult to activate the core when throwing. He also battled through a high-ankle sprain that required a custom TayCo AthleticX brace down the stretch for the Longhorns.

Quinn Ewers' Struggles With the Deep Ball

Despite going viral as a high schooler for throwing what was an alleged 85-yard pass, Ewers struggled with his deep ball accuracy at Texas. His completion percentage did improve over the course of his career, but his attempts on long shots went down.

Here is how Ewers' passing success on throws 20+ yards looked throughout his career:

• 16-of-52 (30.8%) in 2022
• 16-of-47 (34.0%) in 2023
• 21-of-55 (38.2%) in 2024

Arch Manning is More Aggressive

While Ewers was never scared of checking down if needed, Manning came in ready to sling it right away. Manning seemed way more eager to show off his arm and force the issue, while Ewers would often take what the defense gave him.

Now that Manning is the starter, he may need to learn that sometimes less is more, as he threw two interceptions in his first-career start. However, Texas fans will likely see him showing off that arm of his, as 41.1% of his throws were on passes 10 yards or more, while Ewers only threw 34% of his passes 10 yards or more.

Ultimately, the reporter asked for Moore's opinion, but his answer may have fueled one final debate about Ewers and Manning.

Related: Five Texas Players Not Named Arch Manning That College Football Fans Need to Know

This story was originally reported by Athlon Sports on Aug 1, 2025, where it first appeared.