One of the more interesting offseason quarterback battles is over. Following a lengthy competition that bled into preseason camp, Texas coach Tom Herman announced Monday that sophomore Sam Ehlinger would start in Week 1 against Maryland over junior Shane Buechele, with whom he split time last season.

"Sam took the bulk of the reps with the ones today. Shane took most of the reps with the twos," Herman said. "Barring any type of catastrophe between now and the Maryland game, that's the way it'll be."  

"Catastrophe" would seemingly imply injury, which ... well, was a problem for both quarterbacks last season. As such, Herman was never fully able to settle on a player as the guy. However, if Ehlinger is able to stay upright this time around, he's capable of offering the offense more throwing and running the ball. In college football, there's just more inherent value in having a capable dual-threat quarterback. 

Herman feels he has two quarterbacks with which he can win. That's a rare and good feeling, but let's dive into why Ehlinger makes more sense under center for the Longhorns. 

Let's start by looking at the numbers

Side by side, Texas got roughly the same passing numbers out of Buchele and Ehlinger a year ago. Ehlinger attempted more passes overall, but his yards per attempt ended up being identical to Buechele and the touchdown-interception ratios were roughly the same. And even though Ehlinger has the better arm to push the ball vertically, he didn't have a clear-cut edge in big-time throws or deep throws, according to numbers from Pro Football Focus. 

PlayerAttempts-Completions-PercentagePassing Yards (Yards per attempt)Big Time ThrowsTurnover-Worthy ThrowsDeep ThrowsTouchdowns-InterceptionsPasser Rating

Shane Buechele

148-231-64.1

1,516 (6.6)

71338

7-4

85.7

Sam Ehlinger

162-293-55.3

1,940 (6.6) 

71246

11-7

78.3

Where the difference with Ehlinger becomes more apparent is when you dive deeper into the running game. Generally, Buechele and Ehlinger gave you the same amount of positive and negative plays in the passing attack, but Ehlinger was a more productive runner and more successful at evading pressure. 

PlayerHurriesSacksScramblesQB RunsMissed Tackles ForcedYards-TDs

Buechele

60

23

46

40

3

217-2

Ehlinger

96

11

92

106

21

476-2

When you're the 99th most efficient offense in the country, as the Longhorns were according to Football Outsiders, any opportunity to make a play happen when one isn't there is helpful. 

So, what's different this time?

Herman basically said Ehlinger was better in practice than Buechele. That's a big deal since Buechele was considered the better practice player last year and coaches make their decisions based on what they see in practice. And what they saw out of Ehlinger was someone more comfortable making plays with his arm instead of immediately looking for the scramble. 

"He's throwing the ball a lot better," Herman said. "He's sitting in the pocket much more comfortably." 

Some of last year's tendencies can be attributed to being a true freshman. Some of it was protection. Ehlinger may have improved as a passer, but his willingness to stay in the pocket and go through reads is aided by the fact that Texas' offensive line should actually be better this year as well. The Longhorns return 102 career starts in the trenches, per Phil Steele

The option to run is still there for Ehlinger. It is, after all, what really separates him from Buechele. But it doesn't have to be the best and/or only option. 

The key, again, is to stay healthy

Surprise, right? 

Head injuries can happen to anyone, but Ehlinger's injury against Oklahoma last season came on a scramble. There's an experience that Ehlinger has now that he didn't have then; taking care of his body is a priority. If he does that, he has the tools to be a real weapon in moving the chains and scoring points. He can run, and he has the arm to either push the ball vertically or make a passing play on the run using that arm strength. 

The ceiling is there for him to help carry Texas to 10 wins. But the floor can't be as low as it was last year.