Texas quarterback Arch Manning is once again one of the most scrutinized players in college football after landing on the list of preseason favorites to win the Heisman Trophy this year. After getting preseason Heisman shouts last year, Manning had a mixed season for the Longhorns, who missed out on a spot in the College Football Playoff.
The Longhorns were aggressive in the transfer portal, rejuvenating their offensive firepower and acquiring several weapons for Manning to flourish next season.
Analyst Details Arch Manning and Texas’ Preseason Intrigue
During Tuesday’s segment of the “Joel Klatt Show,” Fox Sports analyst Joel Klatt tipped Manning to overachieve after last season’s disappointment and the gamble of the Longhorns hiring Will Muschamp as their new defensive coordinator.
“How are you not intrigued by Texas this spring? Arch Manning is coming back from the foot injury. They’ve gotta develop and get better at the offensive line position,” Klatt said. “Are they gonna be better at wide receiver? I think they will be. But the proof is in the pudding. We got Arch coming back from what is considered a disappointing season.
“They were preseason No. 1 and he was the Heisman Trophy favorite and it wasn’t close to that. So, now you’re gonna go in under the radar than you were a year ago and with more experience. You should be able to overachieve this year and now you have a new defensive coordinator. Will Muschamp comes in and Texas fans are gonna be excited about this.”
Muschamp has had several stops in the SEC, including being the LSU, Auburn, and Texas defensive coordinator, before taking the Florida Gators and South Carolina Gamecocks head coaching jobs.
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Most recently, he was the Georgia Bulldogs’ co-defensive coordinator and defensive analyst before signing a three-year, $8.4 million contract to replace Pete Kwiatkowski as the Longhorns’ defensive coordinator once again.
Steve Sarkisian Gives Positive Manning Update
While speaking to reporters after the first spring practice on Monday, Sarkisian gave a positive update about Manning’s recovery from his surgical procedure to deal with a foot injury that he carried throughout last season.
“He’s right on the path that we thought he would be, but we’re not in a rush to get him out there,” Sark said Monday. “He did some throwing today, but he’s right on, we’re just not in a rush.”
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“So all those things are underway, and we’ll get him going more and more as we get through the spring. We got three this week, we get spring break, we’ll get back. So, like I said, I’m in no rush. I want to make sure he’s 100 percent.”
Despite the mixed performances last season, Manning still earned a PFSN’s CFB QB Impact score of 83.1, after tallying 3,163 passing yards, 26 touchdowns, and 7 interceptions, while adding 399 rushing yards and 10 touchdowns.
