But Manning has done everything his way through his recruitment and since he got to Texas. And now, finally, with Ewers announcing for the NFL Draft on Wednesday, the keys are in Manning’s hands to run the Longhorns’ offense. He’s being handed a Lamborghini and Manning should make it purr.

Texas ended its season in the College Football Playoff semifinals for the second-straight year. There’s, oh, about 150 programs in the nation that’d beg to be in the Longhorns’ shoes after their Cotton Bowl loss to Ohio State.

Many expect quarterback Arch Manning to elevate the Texas Longhorns' offense next season. He must do so with unproven pass-catchers.

Quinn Ewers was that guy. He was the No. 1 recruit, the first perfectly graded quarterback in the 247Sports Composite since Vince Young. His initial decommitment from Texas in 2020 as a high school recruit portended the end of the Tom Herman era.

Austin, Texas – Texas junior quarterback Quinn Ewers declared for the NFL draft on Wednesday, ending a Longhorns career in which he led the program to a Big 12 championship and twice to the College Football Playoff but was not always embraced by a fan base eagerly waiting for Arch Manning to take over.

Texas has reached consecutive College Football Playoff semifinals and posted 25 wins over two years. You have to go all the way back to when Colt McCoy was playing quarterback during coach Mack Brown's heyday more than 15 years ago to find a better stretch.

A few accomplished starting quarterbacks return in the SEC next season, but Arch Manning's skills give him a case for being No. 1 in SEC quarterback rankings.