On Saturday night, Arch Manning helped lead the Texas Longhorns all the way back, overcoming a 20-point fourth-quarter deficit to beat the Ohio State Buckeyes by a final score of 24-23. Despite the dramatic comeback, longtime college football analyst A.J. McCarron was not all that impressed with Manning’s performance.
Following the game, McCarron went as far as to say that the Texas starter “looked horrible” during Saturday night’s game against the Buckeyes despite the massive comeback.
Manning’s Performance Against Ohio State
During Saturday night’s game, Manning got off to a slow start as he was often sailing passes high and missing open receivers. He threw an interception early, but that was hardly his fault, as wide receiver Cam Coleman dropped a well-placed pass and flung it into the air for an Ohio State defender to catch.
In the second half, Manning settled in and led three fourth-quarter touchdown drives, including the game-winning drive that gave them the 24-23 lead.
Manning finished the game 23-for-37 for 195 yards through the air with one touchdown pass and the previously mentioned interception. He also had eight carries for 24 yards on the ground.
McCarron Thought Manning Looked ‘Horrible’
During an appearance on the McCready and Siskey Podcast this week, former Alabama national champion quarterback and current college football analyst A.J. McCarron had a harsh assessment of Manning’s performance.
“I thought Arch looked horrible, honestly,” McCarron said on the podcast. “And I love the Manning family. I thought Arch did not look good. If his first read was not open, he looked lost. He hangs on that first progression so long … He stares down his receivers way too much. Look at his last couple of possessions. Just take the fourth quarter. When any big throw, it’s to his first progression. He never came off his first progression and hit another big throw … I’m not hating against Arch at all. Like I said, I love the Manning family. Known him since I was young or younger.
“I think Arch has a chance to be good, but I think he’s got a lot of growing to do from a pocket awareness standpoint, from a progression standpoint, playing faster. I watched that young kid, the freshman from Tennessee tonight, and I thought him going through progressions looked better than what Arch looks. And Arch has had a whole year of playing experience over him.”
Ultimately, Texas got the win, and Manning is now in the thick of the Heisman Trophy conversation, but McCarron was certainly not sold on what he saw from Manning.
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