Texas quarterback Arch Manning has fallen well short of what the Longhorns... and the rest of the country... expected for his collegiate career.
Despite that fact, and the additional fact that the Horns are on a two-game losing streak, Texas head coach Steve Sarkisian has stuck with Manning as his starter. Now, Sarkisian is building the expectation that Manning isn't the same quarterback he was when he first set foot on the 40 Acres, or even the same quarterback as he was last week.
"I think that somebody texted me today that we lost the 'Ah Shucks kid', you know, and we've created something else. I don't know if we lost him. We created this, you know. We did, all of us, y'all included, meet the whole thing, right? Everybody on ESPN, we've created this," Sarkisian told Inside Texas's Tyler Horka.
Over the past two weeks, a pair of fourth-quarter turnovers (one interception and one fumble) by Manning arguably cost the Horns the two games. Undeniably, Texas needs Manning to have a different mindset. However, even while Sarkisian was sharing how Manning has changed, he expressed that he wasn't certain how it would pan out.
"I would use the word edgy, and I like it. He's edgy right now," Sarkisian said of Manning. "We'll see what comes out of it... But he's edgy right now. And honestly, I appreciate that about him. At some point, he's gotta fight back. And the best way for him to fight back is going out and playing really good football with his teammates and enjoy playing football with his teammates. And so I'm looking forward to watching him compete Saturday night."
The good news, arguably the best news, is that Sarkisian believes Manning has the mindset to fight for where he is as the Horns' starter, because even Texas's biggest fans had reached their limit on believing in Manning as the QB1.
An 'edgy' Arch Manning could be exactly what the Longhorns need
Right now, Manning's doubters are at an all-time noise level, and the reasoning behind their arguments is also at an all-time high.
This season has gone about as poorly as possible, and Texas now sits at 4-2 overall (1-2 in SEC play). At the end of the day, the Horns don't have much to lose if Manning is in a different headspace, especially if he has an additional edge to his style of play.
Of course, even with that "edgy" mindset, Manning could fall short of expectations as Texas hosts the No. 7 Ole Miss Rebels on Saturday, and that could lead to backup quarterbacks KJ Lacey or Dia Bell finally getting a chance.
For now, it sounds like Manning has the right mindset, and he's not taking his starting job for granted, which is exactly how he should have been playing from the beginning of his collegiate career.
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