AUSTIN (KXAN) — The performance that Longhorn fans had been waiting for from Arch Manning took place Saturday night at Darrell K Royal-Texas Memorial Stadium, but against a nonconference and winless opponent in Sam Houston.
After Manning’s lackluster performance in week three against UTEP, there was a clear sense of urgency for the Longhorns’ offense.
2025 Heisman Trophy odds via FanDuel
- Fernando Mendoza, +800
- John Mateer, +900
- Dante Moore, +1200
- Jeremiah Smith, +1200
- Carson Beck, +1300
- Arch Manning, +4000
“Felt good to get back in the endzone,” Manning said. “I think it was some built-up frustration from the past few weeks. I think I play better that way, truth be told.”
Saturday night against the winless Bearkats, Manning connected on 18 of 21 passing for 309 yards and three touchdowns, but his Heisman Trophy odds dropped from +3500 to +4000.
That doesn’t change the fact that Manning expressed a ton of emotions in Saturday’s win.
“There’s a lot more personality in there than sometimes everyone gets to see,” Texas head coach Steve Sarkisian said. “I always feel like he’s a little bit at his best when that emotion kind of comes out some. I think there was a lot built up in there, obviously from last week that he needed to get out.”
Manning connected with 11 different players en route to his stellar passing display. He’ll need the same, if not better, performance after the bye week when the Longhorns begin their SEC schedule against the Florida Gators on Oct. 4 in Gainesville, Florida.
Although Florida has a 1-3 record with losses to South Florida, LSU, and Miami, the Gators have the No. 31 total defense in FBS, allowing an average of 284 yards and 16 points per game.
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