New Year’s Day holds some exciting College Football Playoff matchups, after which only four teams will progress to the next round. The tension is high, and a loss for any team will mean the end for their national championship hopes. Quarterbacks will certainly be feeling the heat as the bulk of expectations is on them.
Speaking of quarterbacks, fans will be paying extra attention to the QBs in the Arizona State Sun Devils vs. Texas Longhorns matchup. This is due to comments made by ASU’s Sam Leavitt, where he claimed to be better than Texas’ Quinn Ewers. While Ewers didn’t take the bait, opting to take the high road instead, ESPN’s Paul Finebaum responded to Leavitt with some thoughts of his own.
Sam Leavitt Calls Out Longhorns’ Quinn Ewers Ahead of New Year’s Day Matchup
Leavitt’s comments, while a little dismissive of Ewers, were more of a challenge than an insult.
“Yeah, I’ve watched him for a fair amount of time now,” Leavitt said. “I’m just excited for the opportunity. People keep counting me out since Day 1, and you know, I’m going to prove why I’m the better quarterback. That’s how I feel since Day 1.”
“So I’m going to put everybody on the map.”
When Ewers was asked what he thought about Leavitt’s words, he gave a surprisingly humble response.
“Yeah, I mean, I saw it,” Ewers said. “Just congrats to them on a great year and a great season. I’ve gotten to watch some of their games, and he’s a talented player. And they’re a fun offense to watch. And again, just excited to be up against them.”
Paul Finebaum Fires Back at Leavitt After Ewers Comments
Finebaum called out Leavitt on ESPN’s “Get Up,” seemingly in disbelief that he had compared himself to Ewers. The college football analyst did not hold back while defending Ewers, dropping a firm verdict on the Arizona State quarterback.
“Sam, you’re not going to prove you’re the better quarterback. I’ve got bad news for you there,” Finebaum said. “Ultimately, he’s in real trouble here. I mean, I applaud anybody who talks a good game. But ultimately, Quinn Ewers is one of the better quarterbacks in the country. He gets overrated a little bit, but this is not going to happen for Sam.”
“Texas should win this game. I think they’ll win pretty easily too.”
MORE: Simulate the College Football Playoffs with CFN’s College Football Playoff Predictor
This season, Ewers has 2,867 passing yards, 26 touchdowns, 10 interceptions, and a 66.5% completion rate. Leavitt isn’t too far, with 2,663 passing yards, 24 touchdowns, five interceptions, and a 63.2% completion rate. The question of which player is the better quarterback really is up for debate, but they’re definitely close on paper.
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