What's Next After Ehlinger?: Longhorns QB Position Preview
Sam Ehlinger's mind was made up by halftime down in San Antonio. With the NFL dream perhaps dwindling, it was time for the Texas quarterback to bet on himself and jump to the next level.
That might have been the best decision made by the senior under center. With a new head coach in the mix, there's no telling if he'd be the starter moving forward. That all would come down to Steve Sarkisian.
Texas will have a legitimate quarterback battle for the first time since 2017. Before that, it was who would be the backup in Tom Herman's system. After Casey Thompson beat out Shane Buechele, it was his job for taking.
Now, Thompson is back in a battle for the starting role for 2021.
The redshirt junior gave himself a pretty quality audition in Herman's final game at the Alamo Bowl. He finished 8-of-10 passing for 170 yards and four touchdowns. If not for Bijan Robinson's three-touchdown game on the ground, here's your game MVP.
Alas, he'll need a new audition. Thompson will take on Hudson Card once more, this time for the leading role of QB1.
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Sark's hands-on approach with quarterbacks has made his eye keen addressing the man in the pocket. So far, his list of gunslinger alums includes Carson Palmer, Matt Leinart, Jake Locker, Cody Kessler, Sam Darnold, Tua Tagovailoa, and Mac Jones.
Is Thompson the next in line? How about starting fresh with Card?
Card, a former four-star recruit from Lake Travis, played in two games during his first year in Austin. Both were in blowout outings to which he tallied a total of 16 yards on the year.
Thompson and Card both will have massive shoes to fill. Ehlinger ended his career as one of the most successful quarterbacks in Texas history. He finished second in completions (923), passing yards (11,436), total offense (13,343), passing touchdowns (94), and total touchdowns (127).
Meanwhile, Thompson has played in seven games. Card has played in seven snaps.
Sarkisian and the offense are in line for a great problem. The short-term solution could be running it back with Thompson the begin the new campaign. Then again, the battle is wide open for Card to leap in the depth chart for 2021 and beyond.
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If not struggle, perhaps the defense will help Texas finally take control of the Big 12 rankings. In 2022, the Longhorns could be fresh with 2022 No.2 QB prospect Maalik Murphy. The 6-foot-5, 220-pound signal-caller has the chance to be the next "it" quarterback to transcend the position.
Sarkisian's long history of developing quarterbacks should give Texas a boost to begin a new era. Sometimes having a quarterback battle means there's a problem.
This isn't one of those times.
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