On Wednesday, Texas quarterback Quinn Ewers announced he would forgo his one remaining year of college football eligibility and declare for the NFL Draft. But a new report suggests he turned down a fortune to make his pro dreams a reality.
Ewers indicated before the college football playoff semifinal against Ohio State in the Cotton Bowl that he would turn pro. there was still a lot of speculation and unsolicited advice on whether he would be better off returning to college for another year and transferring, possibly for a more lucrative situation than he’d get if he was a mid-round draft pick. There was one rumor that suggested Ewers was offered $6 million dollars to transfer to another program.
Now, longtime Longhorns reporter Chip Brown of Horns247 reports the number was higher than that. Brown reports Ewers was offered a staggering $8 million to transfer. The Southlake Carroll product was instead reportedly ready to move on from college football and enter the 2025 NFL. Ewers also wanted to preserve his college football experience as a Longhorn.
Brown says two NFL scouts told Horns247 they expect Ewers to be a late first round to early in the third round pick in April’s draft. Rookie salaries in the NFL are tiered. Top picks are projected to sign contracts worth roughly $42 million over four years. The bottom of the first round would get about $13 million for four years. Second round picks will range from around $10.7 million to $6.8 million. Third round picks are expected to sign contracts around $6 million.
If the report is true, Ewers would be leaving a considerable amount on the table if he’s drafted after the top half of the NFL Draft. “Texas was the only place he wanted to play college football,” Riley Dodge, Ewers’ high school coach at Southlake Carroll, told Brown. “He wanted to leave Texas in good standing.”
Ewers wanted to be a Longhorn his entire life and wants to only be known as a Longhorn from here on out. Brown points out, “Oddly enough, Ewers was labeled a money-seeking mercenary when he graduated from Southlake Carroll early, reclassifying to the 2021 recruiting class and taking NIL money after signing with Ohio State. At the time, Ohio allowed high school students to accept NIL money while Texas laws didn’t.”
Ewers said before the Cotton Bowl matchup with the Buckeyes that his choice to leave high school early was for his family. Brown says, “Ewers grew up a Longhorn fan and developed such a bond with his teammates and coaches and such a love for his time at Texas that he never considered an $8 million NIL offer to transfer and play another season of college football elsewhere.”
