NCAAF News: Arch Manning endures first big setback as key Texas teammate is reportedly out for the season

The 2025 NCAA season hasn’t gotten underway and the Texas Longhorns are already facing adversity. As Arch Manning and company vie to take college football by storm, reports indicate a key player in the program will miss the entire campaign.

The Longhorns will kickstart the year with a litmus test right out of the gate. On August 30, Texas will visit the reigning national champs, the Ohio State Buckeyes. The Horns hope to paint The Horseshoe burnt orange, but it will be a task much easier said than done.

In case anyone needed a reminder, Ohio State knocked Texas out of last season’s College Football Playoffs Semifinal with a 28-14 win at the Goodyear Cotton Bowl Classic. Although Manning only saw the field for a single rushing play that night, that defeat still doesn’t sit right with him. The Horns’ new leader has sworn to avenge the loss and begin his reign in Austin on the right foot.

The long-awaited date is now peeking over the horizon, and the Longhorns can’t wait for the college football season to kick off. However, troubling news recently hit The Forty Acres, as a key piece of Texas’ offensive line has reportedly sustained a season-ending injury.

Arch Manning #16 of the Texas Longhorns pose after defeating Alabama Crimson Tide 34-24 at Bryant-Denny Stadium on September 09, 2023 in Tuscaloosa, Alabama.

“According to sources, Texas OL Andre Cojoe is out for the season with a knee injury,” as reported by @ontexasfootball on X, formerly Twitter.

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Protecting Arch at all costs

Cojoe, a redshirt sophomore in Texas, was expected to compete with sophomore Brandon Baker for the starting right tackle position on Steve Sarkisian’s lineup. Prior to Cojoe’s injury, the right tackle job was the only unresolved issue in the Longhorns’ trenches. Now, it seems to be decided that duty will be taken up by Baker.

Baker had been taking first-team reps over the past few days of fall camp, but the battle for the starting position was far from settled. Now, with Cojoe reportedly injured, the Longhorns are left with a clear-cut frontrunner—but no competition, which is less than ideal. Iron sharpens iron, and Manning would’ve truly benefited from having his teammates push each other daily in the fight to protect him and elevate the team.

There’s a first time for everything

The Longhorns are one of the most hyped-up programs in the nation. The excitement around them was reflected in the release of College Football’s Preseason Top 25 Coaches Poll, where Texas drew a strong prediction ahead of Manning’s first season as QB1.

Such are the expectations surrounding Manning, Sarkisian, and the Horns that they’ve dethroned the Buckeyes for first place in the Coaches Poll. Ohio State now sits at No. 2. As a result, the August 30 clash in Columbus will mark the first time in NCAA history that the nation’s top two programs face off in a season opener. Talk about starting off with a bang. Needless to say, these two teams could very well meet again in the National Championship Game to close out the campaign.