On Saturday Afternoon, the Texas Longhorns had their first chance to prove they're the best team in the Country, like their AP Poll ranking says. In a game that was supposed to be the crowning moment for Arch Manning it turned out to be a nightmare as Arch Manning and the offense never found the rhythm you need to beat a team like Ohio State.
For most fans, this game was shocking as all the media said this offseason was that the Longhorns were the best in show because Arch Manning was. For the most part, everyone knew this team had serious flaws but, it took Ohio State exposing them on the biggest stage for everyone to acknowledge them.
Three overlooked factors derailed Texas on the biggest stage
Arch Manning was never going to live up to the hype
While Arch Manning never asked for the hype but, based on who his family is, he was declared a Heisman front runner, the potential first overall pick, and Texas was declared National Championship favorites even if the tape last season didn't match that hype. Instead, Arch Manning looked exactly like what he is, a first year starting QB going against an elite defense.
Manning finished this game 17-30 passing for 170 yards with a touchdown and an interception completing just 56.67% of his passes for 5.6 yards per attempt and 10 yards per completion. Manning's legs weren't a factor at all as he was held to just 38 yards rushing on the day.
Maybe Arch Manning will live up to the hype at one point but, in this game it was clear he needs more time to develop. At times Arch Manning made terrible decisions and at other times he made great throws but, he's an incomplete product at this point.
Where are the explosive plays coming from?
The offseason saw Matthew Golden, Gunnar Helm, Isaiah Bond, and Silas Bolden all leave for the NFL Draft. There was a massive concern about where the big plays would come from but, everyone pointed to Ryan Wingo while hoping that the younger receivers would come along. Instead, the receivers were blanketed as Ohio State took the deep ball away and forced Arch Manning to be surgical which he wasn't.
The lone explosive plays came way too late when Parker Livingstone caught a 32 yard touchdown with just under 4 minutes to play and when Ryan Wingo and Jack Edrires made great plays on the final drive. but it was too little too late.
The new offensive line needs time to gel
One of the bigger concerns for the Texas offense was replacing as many key pieces of the offensive line as they had to this year. While Arch Manning wasn't great, very few times did he have a clean pocket to throw from and it didn't help when paired with his inexperience as he was holding onto the ball too long. The offensive line hardly got a push in the rushing attack averaging just 4.5 yards per carry. On the final play of the game, the lasting image will be Arch Manning trying to evade pressure just hardly getting the pass off.
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