Texas Should Be Cautious with Quinn Ewers, Give Arch Manning SEC Reps Against Mississippi State

If Quinn Ewers is healthy, Arch Manning shouldn’t even be in the conversation to start—and Steve Sarkisian knows that. Ewers, who was a Heisman Trophy favorite before suffering an oblique strain against UTSA, is clearly the man for Texas. That said, it would make sense for the Longhorns to be extremely cautious with their star quarterback.

Mississippi State offers a perfect opportunity for Manning to get some “SEC” experience under his belt. And yes, I’m using air quotes here because, with all due respect to the Bulldogs, their recent loss to Toledo at home didn’t exactly scream "SEC level" football, especially in the early days of the Jeff Lebby era.

Even if Ewers is at 95%, Texas would be wise to play it safe and let him rest this week. Sarkisian should be as conservative as possible, giving Ewers time to heal fully before the Red River Rivalry against Oklahoma, especially with a bye week looming after Mississippi State. There’s no need to rush Ewers back when the Longhorns have a valuable chance to keep him fresh for what’s sure to be a grueling stretch of the season.

“He’s got to do enough to show me he can play,” Sarkisian said, per ESPN’s Dave Wilson. “Can he execute the game plan? I kind of need to see how he responds from today's work, and then what it looks like on a Tuesday, then a Wednesday, which are pretty heavy days for him, and then how he rebounds on Thursday."

Ewers sustained the injury during Texas’ dominant 56-7 victory over UTSA, exiting in the second quarter. In his absence, Arch Manning has stepped up, immediately making an impact by throwing a touchdown on his first play and following it up with a 67-yard touchdown run on his third.

Manning got the start in last week's 51-3 blowout win over Louisiana-Monroe, going 15-of-29 for 258 yards, two touchdowns, and two interceptions. While his first drive resulted in a pick, Sarkisian remained positive about the young quarterback’s performance.

“I’ve seen a lot of young quarterbacks have a rough start, and then that rough start turns into a rough game,” Sarkisian said. “It was a little bit of a rough start for him, but I thought he rebounded and did some nice things for us. Arch is a really good deep-ball thrower, and it gives guys chances to make plays down the field.”

Last season, Ewers threw for 3,479 yards and 22 touchdowns, and he led Texas to a strong 2-0 start this year, including a statement 31-12 win over Michigan in Ann Arbor. With his return up in the air, Texas has the luxury of a bye week following their matchup against Mississippi State, allowing additional recovery time before their showdown with No. 21 Oklahoma and No. 2 Georgia, the toughest stretch of their season.