Texas quarterback Arch Manning entered the game for the No. 1 Longhorns on Saturday as they face a 20-0 deficit against No. 5 Georgia. Manning, a former No. 1 overall recruit, started and won two games for the Longhorns this season as starter Quinn Ewers recovered from injury.
After Ewers went out with an abdominal injury, Manning stepped in and led the Longhorns to a 2-0 record as a starter. In his SEC debut, Manning completed 26 of 31 passes for 325 yards and two touchdowns and added another score on the ground in a 35-13 win over Mississippi State. On the season, Manning has completed 71% of passes for 901 yards and scored 12 total touchdowns.
Since returning against Oklahoma, Ewers has struggled to regain his form. Texas had just 15 yards on 22 plays when Ewers was pulled in favor of Manning. He was sacked three times and Texas sat in negative rushing yardage. Against the Sooners, he threw an interception on his first drive and failed to clear 200 yards in the performance.
While Manning does not bring the experience of Ewers, he is a more dynamic downfield passer and also adds more with the quarterback running game. Texas’ highly rated offensive line has struggled to block Georgia’s dynamic front in the first top-five matchup at Darrell K. Royal Stadium since 2006.
Texas has won all of its games this season by at least 19 points, including a road matchup against Michigan and 31-point win over Oklahoma. However, the resume has gotten less impressive as the Sooners and Wolverines lost key matchups in Week 8. Ewers has historically been strong against top-five opponents, but has gotten limited time to throw behind the struggling Texas offensive line.
