Why Texas Fans Shouldn't Panic About Arch Manning After Ohio State Loss

Joel Klatt

Lead College Football Analyst

Here’s what I have to say to Texas fans who are concerned about quarterback Arch Manning following the Longhorns’ season-opening 14-7 loss to defending national champion Ohio State … relax.

I think it’s important when talking about Manning that we throw out the last name. If you throw out the last name, then you lessen your expectations a little bit. I alluded to this even before the game. These were unfair expectations. Manning had never thrown a pass in his college career on the road. This was his first true road start, and I can tell you from personal experience that starting on the road for your first time is just a different animal.

I said on an earlier episode of “The Joel Klatt Show” that I didn’t think Manning needed to be sensational. I said there was a good chance there would be some sloppiness along with some flashes of greatness — and that’s essentially what we saw in Columbus.

Go back and rewatch this game, and what you’ll see will paint a clear picture of why Manning struggled against a Matt Patricia-led defense that will likely finish the season as one of, if not the best in college football.

On a fourth-down play on the first series that Texas ended up not getting, the Longhorns ran a run-pass option on the right side and Manning made the completely wrong decision. He handed the football off and there were two unblocked defenders sitting there, ready to tackle the ball carrier. All he had to do was pull the ball out, and the tight end was perfectly wide open in the flat. There was a tight end perfectly wide open for a corner route. He probably could have run it, but he just handed the football off, and there goes the series. That is like a turnover.

Manning probably hasn’t made that poor of a read on that play throughout his entire college career in practice, but he did it in that moment, in that game and in that environment. He had another bad throw late in the third quarter that ended up getting picked off by Buckeyes cornerback Jermaine Mathews. So, did he play well? No, but that’s to be expected.

Starting on the road your first time is hard. Doing it against that Ohio State team at The Shoe — almost impossible. You genuinely don’t beat top-five programs on the road often, if ever.

Manning and the offense did get it going late in that game. They made some tremendous plays against a great defense to get themselves back in the game, to the point where they had the ball driving to tie it in a one-possession game.

I didn’t think the game plan for Texas was great. If head coach Steve Sarkisian goes back to the drawing board, he’s going to realize he didn’t give Manning enough motion and eye candy to distort the defenses’ responsibilities, because when it comes down to offensive playcalling, what you want to do is put defenses under stress. I didn’t think the defenders for Ohio State were under much duress or stress throughout the entire day. The people under stress were Texas because of the distortions and the manipulations that Ohio State’s defense was using. That will be fixed. Sarkisian is too good as an offensive playcaller not to make these fixes, and Manning is a heck of a player. He will learn from these mistakes.

I have zero panic for Manning and the Longhorns. Did Manning play great? No. Did he throw the ball accurately? No. Did he make a lot of poor decisions? Yes. Am I worried? Absolutely not.

Should Texas fans panic after loss to Ohio State?

I’ve said this a bunch. Manning is big and tall and has the ability to control the game from the pocket, threaten the entire field with his arm and use his athleticism when he needs to. He reminds me of Trevor Lawrence at Clemson.

Manning completed 56.7% of his passes (17 of 30) for 170 yards, one touchdown and one interception. He also carried the ball 10 times for 38 yards, with his longest run going for 15 yards, and was sacked just once.

Texas is going to be just fine, partly because Manning doesn’t have to be great. The defense is tremendous and will be for the rest of the year. I thought Texas’ defensive line and secondary were better than advertised. They just ran up against a team that was a little bit better in a few different situations and whose quarterback, Julian Sayin, played a bit better. When you give it that perspective and frame it a little differently, you can see Texas will be just fine.

Still, the Longhorns slid to No. 6 in my latest top 10 rankings after Week 1, while the Buckeyes took the No. 1 spot; I had Texas and Ohio State at No. 2 and No. 3, respectively, in my preseason top 25 rankings. I think there could be a lot of movement at the top of my rankings this season, which featured a ton of really solid football across the country.

Want great stories delivered right to your inbox? Create or log in to your FOX Sports account, follow leagues, teams and players to receive a personalized newsletter daily!

What did you think of this story?