Key Points:
- The Texas Longhorns started the season No. 1 but have struggled at times.
- Arch Manning excelled late against Mississippi State but is in concussion protocol, raising quarterback concerns.
- Texas relies on strong defense, special teams and possibly backup Matthew Caldwell for upcoming ranked opponents.
The Texas Longhorns started the college football season ranked as the No. 1 team in the country, but they have certainly faced some adversity throughout the year.
Led by first-year starter Arch Manning, Texas is sitting at 6-2 on the year with losses on the road against Ohio State and Florida. Although the team’s latest two wins weren’t the prettiest, as they needed overtime to beat Kentucky and Mississippi State, ESPN’s Greg McElroy saw enough in the 45-38 Week 9 win in Starkville to be convinced that they are on the right track.
On a recent episode of “Always College Football,” McElroy declared the Longhorns a team that others across college football may not want to run into as they pick up some steam.
“But they’re still very much alive,” McElroy said. “They still have a game against Texas A&M at home. They have a game against Vanderbilt at home. And I think if you look at their quarterback, Arch Manning, that was probably the best quarter that he has played at the college level… He had a career-high 346 passing yards, he went 12-of-20 for 166 and two touchdowns in the fourth quarter alone. And the crazy thing is it probably could have been a little better.
“There were some big drops on some pretty well thrown balls in this game… Now they have a lot to clean up, don’t get me wrong. But based on what we saw in the fourth quarter of that football game, if that’s what we get going forward from Texas, they’re not going to be a team a lot of teams want to face.”
Arch Manning’s health could impact Texas’ ceiling
Now, there’s no doubt that Manning had some tremendous moments late in Texas’ win over Mississippi State as they erased a 17-point deficit. However, the redshirt sophomore went down in overtime with a concussion, and as confirmed by Texas head coach Steve Sarkisian on Wednesday, he’s still in concussion protocol.
Unlike last season where the Longhorns had a blue-chip quarterback in Manning sitting behind Quinn Ewers when needed, the Longhorns’ backup to Manning this season is the college football version of a journeyman. Troy transfer Matthew Caldwell is on his fourth college program and has attempted a pass in five games this season. He has completed 8-of-11 for 85 yards and one touchdown and also utilized his legs well, rushing for 64 yards on two carries.
While he has been good in mop-up duty and the final few plays of Texas’ overtime win, having to lean on Caldwell at all in this final stretch for Texas could be a big ask considering there are three ranked opponents in their final four games.
Texas will need all hands on deck
Luckily for the Longhorns, if they do need to rely on Caldwell, they have the No. 19 defense in college football on the other side, which can take some pressure off of him to be a hero. Texas also has arguably the best punt/kick returner in college football in Ryan Niblett, who has housed two punt returns for touchdowns this year. At times, he has been the team’s best offense.
The Longhorns’ next big test is on Saturday, as they’ll host No. 9 Vanderbilt at noon ET on ABC.