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Texas has a problem at quarterback — the best problem in college football
By David Wasson
Published:
The Texas Longhorns have a problem at quarterback.
No, this isn’t the column you are expecting. No, we aren’t saying there is a quarterback controversy brewing in Austin. No, Quinn Ewers isn’t going anywhere other than back to QB1 at some point – although that point likely will not this Saturday when the now-No. 1 Longhorns welcome Louisiana-Monroe to DKR-Texas Memorial Stadium.
Nevertheless … the Texas Longhorns have a problem at quarterback.
The problem is that Texas now has too many options under center. What was a theorem has now been proven – as beloved backup Arch Manning got his first meaningful taste of game time last week against UTSA.
Ewers went down with a non-contact abdominal injury in the second quarter against the Roadrunners, an eventual oblique strain that surely sent shivers down the spine of Longhorn Nation. But those shivers didn’t last long, as Manning – nephew of Peyton and Eli and grandson of Archie from the legendary Manning football family – calmly stepped in to produce 223 passing yards, 53 rushing yards and 5 total touchdowns over 9 drives.
Before we get too crazy here, a few caveats: Yes, we know UTSA isn’t exactly Alabama or Georgia. The Roadrunners might be in the running for all-time college athletics nicknames, but even Wile E. Coyote could break his lifetime winless streak against them. Also, it isn’t like Ewers hurt the shoulder or elbow in his throwing arm. Steve Sarkisian may be many things, but he isn’t dummy enough to consider replacing a preseason Heisman Trophy candidate with a redshirt freshman.
That hasn’t stopped the breathless Longhorn fans among you from helping the latter surge up the Heisman Trophy odds. Once a triple-digit longshot, Manning is now inexplicably as low as 16-1 in some parlors. That, dear reader, is precisely how the lights stay lit in Las Vegas.
Still, it is worth lobbing more than a few kudos in Manning’s direction. He electrified the Texas home crowd last Saturday with a 67-yard touchdown dash – the longest by a Longhorns quarterback since Vince Young in 2005. His first throw of the afternoon was a 19-yard TD toss to DeAndre Moore Jr. And his command of the pocket (again, this is UTSA we are talking as the opponent) was sharp throughout.
What Saturday taught us about Texas, and what at least this coming Saturday should teach us when the Longhorns dole out another huge paycheck against the Warhawks (another great nickname) is that there is an embarrassment of riches in the QB room in Austin. Ewers is capital-G great, and though his injury is likely to shut down further talk of him winning Mr. Stiff Arm, he is plenty worthy to lead Texas forward once he is healthy.
But should further injury befall Ewers, his understudy appears equally worthy. Manning carried with him all the hype that comes along with his surname into Austin, and has carefully bided his time in the wings – eschewing all talk of transfer or disharmony, even bowing down to take the EA Sports money to be in the College Football 25 video game.
Manning was rewarded last week against UTSA, and now is in line for his first collegiate start against Louisiana-Monroe in front of a slobbering home crowd that saw him carve it up off the bench. But don’t be fooled, y’all, this isn’t a competition. This is more like what we saw in 2018 when Nick Saban deftly handled with Tua Tagovailoa-Jalen Hurts situation at Alabama.
Sark wasn’t with the Tide back then, but surely he saw how Saban managed what could have easily become a full-blown Tide controversy. It wouldn’t surprise this observer one bit if Sarkisian reached out to Saban at some point since the latter retired to get his counsel on navigating a two-stars-for-one-starting-spot situation.
We aren’t there yet, Longhorn Nation, no matter what bleating you might be making on talk radio and bellied up to the mahogany this week. Manning has all the tools, physical and psychological, to be a star at Texas and beyond. But this is still Ewers’ team – and Sarkisian surely knows that.
Until Ewers returns, though, enjoy the Arch Show in Austin. It likely will produce more fireworks this week against an overmatched team. Come the start of SEC play, though, all that tout heads back to the pine.
An APSE national award-winning writer and editor, David Wasson has almost four decades of experience in the print journalism business in Florida and Alabama. His work has also appeared in The New York Times, The Washington Post, the Los Angeles Times and several national magazines and websites. He also hosts Gulfshore Sports with David Wasson, weekdays from 3-5 pm across Southwest Florida and on FoxSportsFM.com. His Twitter handle: @JustDWasson.
