Quinn Ewers didn’t spend a lot of time at Ohio State. It was essentially four months on the calendar. So it’s not like he left a huge legacy with the Buckeyes during the 2021 season.

Still, Ewers recounted his time in scarlet and gray on Monday with reporters and admitted “I felt like I belonged there” before transferring to Texas.

Now, the three-year UT starter will see Ohio State again Friday in the Cotton Bowl as part of the College Football Playoffs semifinals.

The Southlake product also acknowledged he chose Ohio State in part because Texas state laws prevented high school players from cashing in on name, image and likeness deals. ESPN reported in August 2021 that Ewers had signed a NIL deal with GT Sports Marketing worth $1.4 million to play for the Buckeyes.

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“Me and my family had a pretty big opportunity in front of us that, you know, we felt that it was a good decision for me to go on and forego my senior year (at Southlake Carroll) and enroll early at Ohio State,” Ewers said Monday.

Ewers’ time at Ohio State got off to a jarring start because he arrived during fall camp. Freshman C.J. Stroud was on his way to earning the starting job, thus paving the way for Stroud to become the Big Ten offensive player of the year.

Ewers never saw any meaningful playing time that season and chose to leave Ohio State for Texas under second-year coach Steve Sarkisian.

“Super thankful for the that time that I got to spend there,” Ewers said. “Like I said, I learned a whole lot. So I don't regret any decision I made on going or anything like that.

“But the main reason I went was I felt like I had a great relationship with the coaching staff, and they were winning a lot of games, and I wanted to go be a part of something like that,” Ewers said. “And the reason that I came back to Texas was, one, to be closer to where I’m from and just closer to the resources that I have, and the relationships that I've built over time just being from Texas.”

Ewers said he doesn’t keep up regular communication with Stroud, but they did talk about Oregon State-turned-Texas transfer Silas Bolden, who played with Stroud in high school.

“It’s been fun to watch him and as his NFL career continues and everything,” Ewers said of Stroud. “But what I really learned from the guys in that room is really how to be a college quarterback and kind of what it takes to be a college quarterback, from preparing in the film room and taking that on to practice and then ultimately the game.

Ewers said it’s going to be fun seeing some of his old teammates, including defensive end Jack Sawyer, one of Ewers’ old roommates.

“I mean, in the semester that I was there, I feel like I made, you know, some pretty good relationships while I was there,” Ewers added. “I felt like I belonged there.”