Arch Manning Criticism Is Fair—But ‘Flop’ Is Incredibly Premature Through Just FIVE Games As Texas Starter

Five games into his Texas starting career, Arch Manning is already being discussed as a flop. The truth? The Longhorns’ issues run far deeper than their young quarterback, who has the attention of the entire college football world. 

Don't get me wrong, I understand the hype machine around the Texas quarterback, with a lot of it having to do with the name on his jersey. 

If we're being honest, the conversation around whether Arch Manning is some type of ‘bust’ has been nauseating, five games into his time as the starting quarterback for the Longhorns. But, we can obviously blame a lot of that on the buildup that occurred over the previous two seasons. 

Last year, debates swirled about whether Manning should start over Quinn Ewers. Then came two brief appearances while Ewers was injured — just enough time for Arch to throw his first touchdown pass and ignite a national frenzy.

James Franklin Might Need To Reset His Clock, But There's $50 Million Reasons To Have Penn State Do It

From that moment on, with his first touchdown pass of his collegiate career, it was as if Manning had a rocket strapped to his back in terms of publicity. There is not a more popular quarterback in college football right now, or even the past two seasons, than the young man from Louisiana. 

Those words in Atlanta, months later, look prophetic. Five games into his first season as the full-time starter, Manning is learning what it means to carry the weight of one of college football’s biggest names — and all the unrealistic expectations that come with it.

The Hype Machine Was Always Going To Be Loud Around Arch

You remember those comments made by the Longhorns' starter in Atlanta over the summer, right?

"I’m not really sure how they get these opinions because I’ve only played, what, two games. That’s nice of them to say, but that doesn’t mean anything. Talk is cheap, I gotta go prove it"

He was literally telling us to pump the brakes on him being listed as a Heisman frontrunner, using his softspoken words to tell us this is going to take some time to figure out. 

Texas' Arch Manning Questions The Spotlight: 'Talk Is Cheap, I Gotta Go Prove It'

And while the team is currently 3-2 on the season, with aspirations of a college football playoff run hanging by a thread over the next two months, the criticism is fair, but don't forget about the entire team. 

How's this for a stat: Arch Manning is the leading rusher for Texas through five games this season, with 160 yards on 43 carries. 

Hello!

 If that doesn't show you that this Steve Sarkisian offense is failing in a major way, I don't know how else to characterize it for you. Oh, and he also has five rushing touchdowns, with Jerrick Gibson having just one. 

Do you not think that hampers how he's running the offense? Trust me, I'm not giving Arch Manning a pass on his performances through five games. There are plenty of problems with his footwork, throwing motion and overall presence within the moments. 

Through five games, Manning has thrown for 1,151 yards with 11 touchdowns and five interceptions, while being sacked nine times. 

At some point, we also need to look at the offensive line, and how Sarkisian is dialing up the offensive playcalling. His performance against Ohio State was a damper on the preseason hype, given the offense never really got comfortable until the final ten minutes. 

One returning starter on the offensive line is not talked about enough, along with what Sarkisian did not do with the transfer portal at that postion. Against Florida, Manning was sacked six times, while also being hurried ten times. 

And sure, he looked good against Sam Houston State, which was seemingly just a practice game where Arch was able to retrieve some of his mojo. But then, the Florida game happened, and plenty of takes started flying off the shelves like Christmas decorations at Dollar General during the month of November. 

Five Games In — Manning Is Far From Perfect, But Far From a Flop

On Tuesday, one outlet decided to post on social media that Arch Manning could be one of the biggest flops in college football history. 

My goodness, have we jumped the gun already? The Texas quarterback is FIVE games into his starting career in college football, and we're already trying to label him as a potential flop. 

I get it, this is all about interactions and how we judge Arch moving forward, which I respect because we do the same in this sport. But at this moment, obviously Arch is not having the best start to his Texas career, which is just fine to critique. 

The good thing is, Manning has plenty of more opportunities to get better over the 2025 season, even if that means Texas is not participating in the college football playoff. 

Oh, and since these athletes are now being paid in more of a professional manner, the criticism is fair game, which I would imagine Arch wholeheartedly agrees with. 

But for the love of all that's good, can we not rush to judge him as some sort of failure? 

We'll also have another full year to hype him up for the 2026 Heisman Trophy, since the NFL Draft was never really a choice for the family to begin with. 

Let me know what you think. Email me at Trey.Wallace@OutKick.com