Is spring camp the final shot for QB Hudson Card at Texas

Entering spring camp later this month, most eyes will be falling directly on the looming position battle for the Texas football program at quarterback between rising junior Hudson Card and freshman Quinn Ewers. With Card sticking around ahead of the start of spring ball, despite the speculation that he could enter the NCAA Transfer Portal this offseason.

Card was in a quarterback battle last offseason with the former redshirt junior Texas signal-caller Casey Thompson. But Card is the lone remaining quarterback that even got one start with Texas last season since Thompson left for the Nebraska Cornhuskers via the transfer portal earlier this offseason.

The problem that Card is facing this offseason compared to last is the fact that the overwhelming majority among the Longhorns faithful feel like Ewers is going to be the eventual starter no matter what. Most Texas fans likely felt like Card was actually the quarterback of the future for the Longhorns at this time last offseason.

It seems like the odds that Card is the Week 1 starter for Texas are very slim barring an injury or something like that for Ewers. Yet, Sark seems inclined to keep the quarterback battle open during spring camp.

And you would have to anticipate that Card is going to give everything he has to this quarterback competition in the spring if he still has yet to enter the portal. It sounds like he really was engaged for the Longhorns in winter workouts earlier this offseason.

Texas football could start to move on from Hudson Card on the two-deep QB depth chart if he doesn’t play well in spring

This situation sounds similar to the one in spring ball last offseason. While Thompson and Card were both splitting first-team quarterback reps in spring camp last offseason, Ewers and Card are likely to do the same in the next couple of months.

Moreover, a report from Horns247 on March 2 (paid content) indicates that Sark probably isn’t going to name a quarterback in spring ball. But that doesn’t mean that the indications of who the starting quarterback will be in the fall don’t start emerging in the midst of spring camp.

If Card isn’t able to make any strides in spring ball, it’s likely that Ewers could be named the starting quarterback early on in fall camp. In that situation, it’s hard to imagine Card ever becoming the starter at Texas again.

At that point, you’d have to figure that Card would really ponder leaving for a chance to be a starting quarterback elsewhere by way of entering the transfer portal.

Sark not naming a starting quarterback in spring ball likely at least allows him to have Card and Ewers in the QB room heading into the fall. And if Card does put up a formidable fight in this quarterback battle, he could still get some significant game reps this fall, even if he’s not the Week 1 starter.

All in all, it does feel like this spring is really the last shot for Card to make a significant impact in the mind of Sark to prove he deserves to be on the field in critical situations this fall. Card entering the transfer portal seems highly likely if the writing is on the wall that Ewers will be named the starter right away this fall.

Texas also has incoming freshman former four-star recruit Maalik Murphy that will be trying to make headway on the quarterback depth chart this year. It’s easy to see a situation where Murphy passes up Card on the depth chart if he doesn’t really make a push in spring camp.