The NCAAF season is heating up, especially following the Texas Longhorns‘ loss to Georgia last weekend. During the game, HC Steve Sarkisian decided to bench Quinn Ewers, giving Arch Manning a chance for a couple of snaps. On this situation, none other than Johnny Manziel had some strong words.
In a recent interview with Collin Wilson of The Action Network, the former quarterback of the Cleveland Browns was blunt in his opinion regarding HC Sarkisian’s curious decision to switch quarterbacks at the end of the first half against the Bulldogs.
“Coach Sark has come out and said that [Ewers] is his guy, he’s our starter, so at no point throughout would I ever think I would see him have to go to the bench,” Manziel said. “I thought this was a really weird decision.”
Unfortunately for the Longhorns, the strategic change proposed by the coach did not pay off. The Bulldogs proved too much for the Texas team, which ultimately lost 30-15, marking the end of their unbeaten streak.
Mississippi State vs Texas Sept 28 Sept 28, 2024.Head coach Steve Sarkisian of the Texas Longhorns during pre game warmups vs the Mississippi State Bulldogs at DKR-Memorial Stadium.
Sarkisian explains reasons behind QB change
The surprising decision by Coach Sarkisian to bench Quinn Ewers before the end of the first half took both fans and analysts by surprise, especially given his repeated statements affirming that Ewers would be the starting QB.
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Following what was ultimately the Longhorns’ first loss of the season, the coach addressed the media, specifically mentioning Manning‘s brief appearance during some snaps in Texas’s offense.
“My feeling in the game was I felt Quinn was a little uneasy, and I just felt like giving him a chance to kind of step back and regroup,” Sarkisian said. “I didn’t know if we’d get a series or two with Arch, depending on how much time was remaining in the half on the clock. So we just told Quinn, we said, ‘Hey, we’re gonna go with Arch here. Give you a chance to get into the locker room. Let’s regroup and then come back out in the second half.’ So that’s what we did.”
What’s next for the Texas Longhorns?
The Texas Longhorns felt the sting of their unbeaten streak coming to an end with the loss to the Georgia Bulldogs. However, they remain serious title contenders, and after a tough series of games, they will ultimately determine what they’re capable of by the end of the season.
- vs Vanderbilt, October 26th
- vs Florida, November 9th
- vs Arkansas, November 16th
- vs Kentucky, November 23rd
- vs Texas A&M, November 30th
