Regardless of whether you are a defensive enthusiast, we all know that the football world revolves around the quarterback position.
There’s a reason Texas landing Quinn Ewers and Arch Manning has generated as much buzz as it has, quarterback is the most important position in sports. For a program like Texas who has been searching for their next great quarterback for what feels like forever, Ewers could very well be the one.
However, the Longhorns aren’t the only program that has a talented signal caller. In fact, the Big 12 is known for pumping out talented quarterbacks left and right with recent names such as Patrick Mahomes, Baker Mayfield, Kyler Murray, Brock Purdy and Jalen Hurts all hailing from a Big 12 program.
Having a good or even great quarterback can be the difference between a team wining or losing games, and Longhorns fans are well aware what inconsistent quarterback play produces. Just look at the last decade or so of Texas football.
While it’s important to have a good quarterback, it is just as important that you are able to slow down the opposing team’s passer. Whether it was Will Grier at West Virginia or Caleb Williams during his breakout year at Oklahoma, Texas has suffered heartbreaking losses due to stellar quarterback performances.
Although this upcoming season is viewed as being “Texas’ year” the Longhorns will not have a walk in the park in order to reach the Big 12 Championship or the playoff. According to ESPN’s FPI, Texas has the 12th most difficult schedule in the country, which means there are some talented signal callers along the way.
Here are my rankings of quarterbacks who I think can give the Longhorns the most trouble in 2023.