Steve Sarkisian makes bold admission on Arch Manning’s return with Texas after concussion

The final score may not indicate it, but Arch Manning and the Texas Longhorns played their best game of the NCAA season during the 34-31 win over the Vanderbilt Commodores. After the game, head coach Steve Sarkisian voiced a sincere statement for everybody on the locker room to hear.

You hear it on every level of football. From pee-wee to the big leagues, protecting the quarterback is priority number one for every team. In college football, the recipe for success isn’t any different. Texas may have figured that out the hard way, but at least it seems to be a learned lesson in Austin. During the home win over the Commodores, Manning enjoyed the cleanest pocket he’s had all year at The Forty Acres.

Coming into the game after a week in the NCAA’s concussion protocol, keeping Manning out of harm’s way couldn’t have been stressed more by Sarkisian and his staff. Needless to say, the Longhorns were up for the task. For the first time in the year, Texas allowed 0 sacks to an SEC opponent. After the game, Sarkisian handed the team its flowers.

“This was the best protection [Manning has] gotten all year,” Sarkisian said postgame, via ESPN. “I thought Arch, to his credit, helped them. He did some things in protection to pick some things up to allow us to throw it down the field, but it allowed him to get through reads.”

Paid off

Vanderbilt walked into Darrell K. Royal-Texas Memorial Stadium with one goal in mind: breaking the hearts in Bat City and ending the Longhorns’ hopes early in the college football campaign. However, Manning and company got off to a hot start. Clearly, the burnt orange was energized upon playing their first home game in over a month in the NCAA campaign.

“I think we’re very hungry. I think this team has grown very close together,” Sarkisian said per Inside Texas. “I didn’t love our schedule, the fact that we were going to be gone for 42 days from home.

“In the end, it was probably the best thing for us. It was probably the thing we needed, this group to really grow together, lock arms, battle, compete, and fight for one another with one another for a common goal. They know the work’s not done.”

Setting the tone

On the very first play of the game, Manning found wideout Ryan Wingo behind the line of scrimmage to set up a screen play. In the blink of an eye, Wingo got a block and found an opening to escape on a straight run for a 75-yard touchdown. It was an almost utopic start to the noon showdown for the Longhorns, who kept the foot on the gas pedal during the first half. Vanderbilt pushed back late, but Texas managed to hold on for a much needed ranked victory in the SEC.

Not much went Vanderbilt’s way during its stay in Austin. The Commodores’ defense had averaged 2.6 sacks per game going into the matchup. However, against Texas’ offensive line — which had allowed 18 sacks in eight outings — Vandy struggled to get to Manning.

New Manning

Now, the lesson is there for the taking in the SEC: if a defense gives Manning a clean pocket and time to operate, it’s in for a very long day in the Forty Acres. Moreover, Sarkisian warned the rest of the league about the growth spurt Manning has been on since becoming one household name in college football.

“I do think [Manning’s] grown up,” Sarkisian noted. “He just looks so much more mature, so much more poised. He looks so much more confident, and he’s got a lot more trust in those guys around him.”