3 Takeaways from a heartbreaking loss for Texas to Alabama

Quinn Ewers would have made the difference

It’s revisionist history and basically means nothing, but you have to believe that Texas would have won this game if quarterback Quinn Ewers hadn’t suffered an injury and missed most of the game.

Hudson Card was fine. He was beaten up and completed 14-of-22 passes for 158 yards. He had zero interceptions, which was another key factor.

Yet, Card isn’t Ewers and that’s why Quinn was ranked No. 1 overall at one time in the 2022 recruiting class. We saw it on display in the first half. He threw a dime that should have been a touchdown to Xavier Worthy and also completed 9-of-12 passes for 134 yards.

He had 134 yards on just 12 throws (11.2 average). That tells you how much the offense suffered. Of course, you have to protect your quarterback. You also need to be able to make a 30-yard field goal.

If Texas had done that, despite everything else, it might have won (who knows, Young, may have just engineered a TD drive at the end) but the Longhorns have to quit making those little mistakes. You can’t beat No. 1 by attempting five field goals, especially if you miss an easy one.

That said, if Texas can find some consistency and if Ewers is healthy, this looks like a dangerous team. But we still have to see some big wins before we believe it.