So far this season, it’s safe to say the Longhorns have heard the noise. It goes without saying that the team has felt the pressure, with Arch Manning admitting this past week that he’s felt it mentally. However, Saturday’s game was one that should have served as a confidence-inducing win – and it did. Against Sam Houston, the Texas offense took off, with Manning accounting for a total of five touchdowns in the team’s 55-0 win.
Earlier this season, Longhorns fans found out that Arch Manning is, indeed, human. But that doesn’t mean Manning lacks the tools to become a great quarterback. On Saturday, Longhorns fans – and Arch himself – saw the quarterback that No. 16 can be. The numbers? Manning finished the game with 309 passing yards, three passing touchdowns, and two rushing touchdowns.
In addition to Manning, the Longhorns needed big performances from Ryan Wingo and DeAndre Moore. Texas’ WR1 and WR2 had been underwhelming to this point in the season. Like Manning, the rest of the Texas offense seemed to wake up from their slumber. Wingo had two touchdown receptions on the day, including a massive 53-yard score to kick off the second half. Meanwhile, Moore tallied five receptions for 79 yards in his return from injury.
On the other side of the ball, Texas’ defense continues to show up to work with their lunch pail – and simply continues to dominate. All night, Sam Houston could only rely on short routes near the line of scrimmage to pick up yards. Unfortunately for Bearkats head coach Phil Longo, that’s not going to get the job done against Texas. In total, the Longhorns allowed just 113 yards of total offense in a stellar shutout victory.
Texas’ next game marks the start of SEC play, with the Florida Gators on the horizon. Time will tell whether Texas’ offensive woes are truly behind them, but tonight’s win against Sam Houston is a building block. In basketball, sometimes you simply need to see the ball go through the basket. For the Texas offense, maybe they just needed to see that they could, indeed, rack up over 600 yards of total offense.
Next on the schedule: Texas kicks off SEC play in Gainesville against the Gators – with more details to be announced soon.
