It wasn’t the debut either team had hoped for — not for the Clemson Tigers, nor for the Texas Longhorns. Clemson fell to LSU, while Arch Manning and the Longhorns came up short against Ohio State. In fact, Manning’s performance quickly became the focal point of postgame discussions, drawing significant criticism — something head coach Dabo Swinney took time to thoughtfully address.
Cade Klubnik’s performance also came under scrutiny, prompting his current head coach to step up in defense of both young quarterbacks. Swinney emphasized that despite the early struggles, both Manning and Klubnik possess the talent and potential to thrive at the highest level of college football.
“None of that stuff matters, but these are young people, right? These are kids,” Swinney said during his press conference. “They’re not robots. I mean, I know we have so much talk about Arch, right? Arch Manning is gonna be a freaking superstar.
“And people that don’t believe that, they’re just stupid. He’s gonna be a superstar …But, what’s been put on this kid? I mean, like, I mean, it’s unbelievable. And all sudden, now it’s like, okay, you make a bad play or, I mean, the guys just playing, it’s the same thing with our guy, you know?
He also added: “Like he’s the worst quarterback in the history of football and then he goes to, now he’s a Heisman guy, now he sucks again. So that’s football. But you just, you just have to learn how to manage that stuff … This is what you sign up for … This is what we do … this is our world. You fail in front of everybody, and you succeed in front of everybody, and you got to be able to handle both of those things.”
A tough start for Manning
Manning’s debut with the Longhorns was a tough one. The highly-touted freshman quarterback, struggled to find his rhythm in a gritty 14-7 loss to the Buckeyes. The Texas offense stalled repeatedly, managing only a single touchdown as Manning faced consistent pressure and the Texas offensive line failed to open up lanes for the running backs.
It was a challenging welcome to college football for Manning as a starter, who will need to quickly adjust to the speed and physicality of the game if the Longhorns hope to contend for a championship.
Sarkisian’s frustration
Steve Sarkisian is well aware of what it means to have a Manning under center for the Longhorns this season — and the pressure that comes with it. That’s why he didn’t hide his frustration after watching his quarterback struggle to find his footing throughout the game against the Buckeyes.
“I was pretty frustrated coming out at the first half,” Sarkisian said. “Because I felt like we had a good plan. But I wasn’t mad in the sense I felt like, if I could just calm Arch and get him into a space. That’s why we met him directly at halftime. Like I said, I thought we played a really good second half.
“If you would have told me we were going to go out and have just about 260 yards in the second half against that defense, but only score seven points, that’s where the disappointment came in that we weren’t able to get more points. Our ability to move the football in the second half.”
More opportunities ahead
Despite a shaky debut for Manning and his Longhorns, Sarkisian’s team faces a series of upcoming games where the quarterback could begin to unlock his full potential — if he’s able to rise to the challenge.
- vs San Jose State, September 6
- vs UTEP, September 13
- vs Sam Houston, September 20
- @ Florida, October 4
- @ Oklahoma, October 11
SURVEY Can Manning’s Longhorns make a big splash this College Football season?
Can Manning’s Longhorns make a big splash this College Football season?
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