Texas dominated Texas State in their season opener on Saturday, routing the Bobcats 59-7 and allowing just a single touchdown, in the second quarter. Arch Manning, working with an array of new weapons, put together one of the better performances of the weekend, completing 20 of 27 passes for 305 yards and four touchdowns with one interception. But according to leading college football analyst and "Voice of the SEC" Paul Finebaum, the real test comes this week against Ohio State.
"I hate to come down on Arch, but he has to have a monster game because that game last year still shadows him a little bit," Finebaum said. "Steve Sarkisian told me a couple of months ago that that game probably helped Arch Manning more than any other game ... Arch, if he doesn't shy, I think it's going to affect him.
But most importantly, Texas has to win that game because that's going to be on Sarkisian." More news: SEC Freshman QB Reaches Milestone Not Seen Since Cam Newton Manning was the highest-paid player in college football last year, with an NIL valuation of around $6.8 million. But while his end-of-season numbers were strong, he had multiple games early in the season that had fans questioning whether he deserved all of the hype and money. One of the first and worst performances came in the season opener against the Buckeyes.
Manning finished 17 of 30 for 170 yards and one touchdown with one interception, as the Longhorns fell 14-7 on the road. That game kicked off a string of inefficient performances for Manning, including three games with a sub-50% completion rate. But this year already feels different for Manning and the Longhorns.
Texas brought in top transfer wide receiver Cam Coleman, who scored two touchdowns and 70 receiving yards on three catches in the season opener against Texas State. Paired with Ryan Wingo, Manning now has two legitimate deep threats. Hollywood Smothers, another top transfer, rushed for 70 yards on seven carries and added 28 receiving yards and a receiving score.
More news: Alabama QB Keelon Russell Makes Bold Ryan Coleman-Williams Guarantee More news: Georgia’s New Starting TE Draws Brock Bowers Comparison Manning has more pieces around him this season, along with an improved offensive line and another year in Sarkisian's system. Plus, the upcoming clash with Ohio State will be played in Texas this time. Kickoff is set for 7:30 p.m.
Extract — continue reading at the source.
