Quinn Ewers addresses NIL-fueled transfer portal speculation: 'I'm not worried about all that stuff'

Friday night, Quinn Ewers and Texas will play in the Cotton Bowl. A spot in the College Football Playoff national championship is on the line as the Longhorns take on a red-hot Ohio State team in Arlington as a winter storm bears down on the area.

But away from the gridiron, questions are swirling about Ewers’ future. He can declare for the NFL Draft or, as has been speculated, he could enter the transfer portal for one more year of eligibility. On3’s Pete Nakos previously reported tampering is at an “all-time high” with major NIL offers coming in for the Texas quarterback as he weighs his decision.

During Cotton Bowl media day, though, Ewers made it clear his focus is on the task at hand. He’s not listening to the chatter about what’s next and is keeping his eye on the matchup against Ohio State.

“Right now, I’m just not worried about all that stuff,” Ewers said Wednesday. “People can say all they want to say. I’m just focused on Friday at this point in time.”

Ewers also made it clear he hasn’t thought about what’s next for him in his football journey. He’s said it’d be “selfish” of him to get ahead of himself, which is why he’s staying in the moment – and leaning on his faith to help him do it.

“First off, I think I’d be doing a disservice to my teammates about me even thinking about what’s next,” Ewers said. “What’s right in front of us isn’t over it. That’s another thing that God has helped me so much through, is just being present in every single moment I’m in and not looking too far ahead because I’ll trip on what’s right in front of me. Again, that’s too selfish of thinking for me to even be thinking about what’s next for me.”

More on Quinn Ewers’ looming NFL Draft decision

Ewers leads the SEC with 29 touchdowns to go with 3,189 yards entering Friday’s Cotton Bowl. He could’ve declared for the draft last year after Texas fell in the Sugar Bowl, but opted to run it back in 2024 with Arch Manning waiting in the wings.

Manning is on track to start next season, which adds to the intrigue around Ewers’ decision. ESPN’s Mel Kiper Jr. took a strong stance last month, though, saying Ewers should enter the portal and stay in college if his draft grade doesn’t change.

“Arch Manning is going to be the quarterback at Texas next year. So if you want to play college football, you probably have to move on somewhere. I would do that if I’m Quinn Ewers,” Kiper said. “I would not come out unless I really played phenomenal football in these playoff games and came into this draft process with tremendous momentum. I don’t want to become a second- or third-round pick.”

Ewers is one of the highest-profile athletes in college football, entering the Cotton Bowl with an On3 NIL Valuation of $4.5 million. That ranks fourth in the college football NIL rankings and No. 2 on the Texas roster behind Manning. Ewers also ranks No. 4 in the On3 NIL 100, the first of its kind and defacto NIL ranking of the top 100 high school and college athletes ranked by their On3 NIL Valuation.

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