Real Culprit for Steve Sarkisian & Texas Misery Named as Analyst Clears Arch Manning’s Future Stance
The burnt orange hype train was losing steam down the stretch last season before eventually coming to a scarlet red stoplight at the Cotton Bowl. Zoom out and look at the bigger picture, though. You’d realize this has been a bit of a trend for Texas over recent seasons. Yes, Steve Sarkisian has propelled the program into perennial championship contenders. Back-to-back playoff appearances with realignment to the SEC sandwiched in between is great. But there’s been a proverbial glass ceiling over UT. Preventing them from ascending to the absolute top echelon. Not only does one analyst reckon that’s about to change. They’ve identified the primary reason behind why the Longhorns couldn’t break through.
Last season, Texas’ modus operandi was founded on defense. They boasted elite talent in both the front 7 and the secondary, so this made sense. It worked, too, as evidenced by the statistics and the eye test. However, it was a little strange. An offensive whiz in Steve Sarkisian riding the coattails of his defense? Perhaps this wasn’t by design. As talented as your receiving corps and tailbacks are, teams only go as far as their quarterback takes them. There’s a school of thought, somewhat rational, that Texas just didn’t have the best quarterback play. Which didn’t just cause Sark to lean into his defense but hard-capped the team as a whole.
Quinn Ewers was an outright stud coming out of high school, destined for greatness. But finding yourself on the same depth chart as CJ Stroud at Ohio State is rather unfortunate. Ewers’ decision to jump ship and trade Columbus for Austin largely worked, but it wasn’t as prosperous as both parties would’ve thought. Conceded injuries really affected Quinn Ewers’ Texas career. He and Sarkisian even proclaimed he was playing hurt through the playoffs last season. Alas, whatever the sticking point, Ewers couldn’t be the force multiplier at QB people hoped. In fact, Joe DeLeone thinks he was outright holding them back. Previewing Texas’ 2025 season over “The Ruffino & Joe Show,” DeLeone laid a massive indictment on Ewers. Worked into some gaudy hopes for his successor, Arch Manning.
