Texas is giving Arch Manning a little more room to breathe - and a little more pressure at the same time.
Following a 27-24 loss to Florida in Week 7, head coach Steve Sarkisian said he would "evaluate everything" on offense, and that includes the quarterback spot. Texas is starting that process this week as it gets ready to host No.
7 Ole Miss on Saturday at 7:30 p.m. ET on ABC.
On Monday, ESPN’s Pete Thamel reported that the Longhorns plan to give sophomore quarterback Karle "KJ" Lacey "an uptick" in first-team reps during practice. Manning is still listed as the starter, but the message is clear: his grip on the job is loosening.
The recent mistakes have made that possible. Over Texas’ last two games, Manning has delivered some big moments, but he has also coughed up costly turnovers late.
In the 27-24 loss to Oklahoma in the Red River Rivalry, he threw two interceptions, including a pick-six. Against Florida, he fumbled on a 2nd-and-8 from the Texas 48-yard line with 1:48 left in the fourth quarter, while the Longhorns trailed 27-24.
For the season, Manning’s numbers haven’t fully backed up the hype. Entering Week 8, he ranks 10th among 16 eligible SEC quarterbacks in completion percentage at 63.9 percent. He has 11 touchdown passes and five interceptions.
Lacey is the next man in line. A former four-star recruit from Saraland High School in Saraland, Alabama, he has barely seen the field across two seasons in Austin, going 8-of-9 for 70 yards. Still, he entered the offseason with buzz, and Sarkisian went as far as comparing him to former Alabama quarterback Bryce Young, the 2021 Heisman Trophy winner.
"I think he would be a dangerous guy this fall if [he gets] in the game," the coach said in June, per CJ Vogel of OnTexasFootball.
If Manning doesn’t clean things up soon, Lacey may get the chance to show exactly why Texas has kept talking him up.
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