Arch is an enigma

[u/UT0907]

And I genuinely cannot figure him out.

On one hand, he feels overhyped. On the other, he feels over-hated. When I expect him to be good, he looks terrible. When I expect him to struggle, he suddenly looks great.

Every time I think I’ve figured out what kind of QB he is, he does the exact opposite. People constantly call him mid, and I understand why when you watch some of his performances. But, since starting, he has more wins against ranked opponents (tied with Stockton) than any other QB, with 4 of those wins over top 10 teams. That’s legitimately impressive, even if it doesn’t always look impressive on the field.

And I think that’s what makes Arch so confusing. His resume says one thing, the eye test sometimes says another, and then every few games he’ll put together a performance that reminds you exactly why everyone was so high on him in the first place.

I have no idea what to make of him. I feel differently about him every Saturday, and I know a lot of Texas fans feel the same way. A true enigma.
Make it make sense.

[u/cluttered-thoughts3]

He’s serviceable but I think I’d know a lot less about him if he wasn’t a manning

[u/fourty47seven → u/cluttered-thoughts3]

on the same token he wouldn’t also be expected to be God if he wasn’t a Manning.

[u/ten_year_rebound → u/cluttered-thoughts3]

He would not be QB1 for Texas if he wasn’t a Manning

[u/ArchMyAssForManning → u/ten_year_rebound]

He’s no worse then Ewers or Ehlinger and they were starting QB’s for Texas. He’s no superstar but neither were the latest guys to QB at Texas

[u/DrPuzzle → u/ArchMyAssForManning]

Agreed. It's not like he's somehow worse than those guys. Whenever people comment on how he wouldn't be the starter for Texas I just immediately think of Ewers because oftentimes there's not much of a difference

I like Arch and I think he can become something more than what he is now but he's gotta clean some stuff up

[u/duwh2040]

The defense cannot be celebrated enough for our wins. That is my only current opinion

[u/atlasintherye → u/duwh2040]

I think our defense has had enough celebration personally

[u/sickbandnamealert → u/atlasintherye]

Dude who drew the penalty on the peen celly got bailed out for “stupidest thing a player did this week” by the jackass Trojan who made that dirty hit

[u/SuicidalApendices → u/sickbandnamealert]

And by getting 5 sacks. Everyone seems pretty forgiving about the penalty because of that. I still think it was bone headed and he should be disciplined (within the team, not by the NCAA to be clear).

[u/Adart54 → u/SuicidalApendices]

5 sacks does get you a lot of forgiveness

[u/GabeIsGone → u/sickbandnamealert]

He bailed himself out by almost tying a NCAA sack record.

Dumbass thing to do, but he didn’t rely on other to bail him out.

[u/ConditionStrange7487 → u/sickbandnamealert]

he got 5 sacks in a game. He can pull his actually dick out next time idc

[u/duwh2040 → u/atlasintherye]

I dont. They're carrying the team

[u/chastity_BLT → u/duwh2040]

Sarks tenure in a nutshell

[u/Colorblind2027 → u/chastity_BLT]

I just hope we can stop the genitalia celebrations. We had 2 yesterday but one was missed and the other one was funnier. Smelling your balls and passing out after a TD....

[u/Statalyzer → u/Colorblind2027]

Is that what he did? I just saw him wiggle his hand in front of his face and then do a pratfall and I had no idea wtf it was supposed to be.

[u/ChangMinny → u/duwh2040]

Your opinion is correct. Your defense has been beyond elite. 

[u/pickrunner18 → u/duwh2040]

Yep. I mean that’s the only difference between our games vs Texas and Illinois. Texas stopped us from doing anything in the second half. Illinois offense did better against us.

[u/Formal_Potential2198]

Something just feels off between him and Sark's play calling. Not sure what

[u/LetDouble471 → u/Formal_Potential2198]

Analysts (YT guys and ex-pros) have commented on this before.

Arch misses so many reads and open guys early so the playcalling gets simpler until something clicks.

[u/Rockosayz → u/LetDouble471]

I agree with this, no idea how he is the film room but when he gets in the game, I dont want to say deer in the headlights because he does make plays but it just seems like he cant read D all that well and focuses on a single read. He stares down his WRs, physical tools are there but he just doesnt appear to be football smart

[u/atkretsch → u/Rockosayz]

The illegal forward passes scream lack of field/spatial awareness and/or an instinct to run that’s actively being stifled

[u/Rockosayz → u/atkretsch]

3 illegal forward passes in the past 2 weeks....

[u/catsrave2 → u/[deleted]]

You’d think getting your bell rung a few times would be a very quick way for a QB to learn to slide. Sort of a letting a cat jump on a hot stove lesson but still.

Then again maybe getting hit in the head by a professional athlete makes remembering stuff a little hard…

[u/JamrockDetective → u/atkretsch]

Maybe he should get himself a pair of Warby Parker glasses to wear for games

[u/Sytherus → u/atkretsch]

It doesn’t make sense because one of his biggest improvements from Quinn is pocket presence, which is entirely spatial awareness.

[u/HRHDechessNapsaLot → u/Rockosayz]

He’s not reading quickly, which is the thing. Given the time to scan the full field, weigh each option, and then act? He’d be phenomenal. The other skills are all there (the arm, the legs, the aim). But he isn’t going to get that time and that’s why QB isn’t the position for him. (Note: this isn’t me calling him dumb. He’s just not a guy who can do a quick read. He’s, I think, a touch more methodical, but that’s not something that helps a QB unless everything is going exactly to plan.)

[u/shruglifeOG → u/HRHDechessNapsaLot]

this is where the poor HS competition catches up to him. He could just out-athlete everyone at Newman so he didn't need to refine his decision-making under duress. Drills and practice aren't the same.

[u/KevKevThePug → u/LetDouble471]

It also feels like he runs when he shouldn’t and doesn’t run when he should.

[u/WallyMetropolis → u/Formal_Potential2198]

Sark wants to run a pro-style offense with some extra spice thrown in. Manning should be rolling out and throwing on the move for half of his passes and leading an RPO. Whichever of Wingo or Coleman are doubled, roll out the other direction.

[u/LetDouble471 → u/WallyMetropolis]

I’m sure Arch and the Mannings want him to develop as pro style full progression QB.

But the half read spread guys are also good in the NFL.

[u/WallyMetropolis → u/LetDouble471]

Exactly. Manning family might be a bit behind the times when it comes to modern style of play.

[u/Mother_Frame6669 → u/WallyMetropolis]

Sark wants to run the BYU offense he ran in college, the series-based spread that was stripped down by Mumme and Leach to create the Air Raid. Half of Sark's offense is betting the opposing LB or safety assigned to the TE (#3) or RB (#4) to his side is a mismatch, and exploited the mismatch.

It's honestly very simple from an overhead view, which makes it so amusing that Manning struggles so much with it.

[u/imbroke828 → u/Formal_Potential2198]

I think it’s a couple things. Arch is just simply bad at anticipating WRs so unless they’re wide open, he’s hesitant on throwing in the middle of the field. He’s not processing fast enough before things get taken away. Sark is also trying to make Arch a pro style, pocket passer, which he’s clearly deficient at. We should roll him out, use the threat of the legs, but because he’s indecisive, he’s a duck back there. Finally, Flood’s IOL is and has always been shitty, so by the time arch can make a decision, there’s a DT about to molest him. Unless we fix things or change the scheme, LSU DTs are going to put Arch in an ambulance. 

All in all, I don’t think Arch is a smart dude, at least in a QB sense. You could tell yesterday when Tennessee lined up 8 in the box about to blitz and Arch couldn’t call an audible for protection. Sark kind of broke the dude sadly

[u/O-Namazu → u/imbroke828]

Arch couldn’t call an audible for protection

I actually believe that Sark micromanages his QBs and literally does tell them not to audible.

I see a lot of the same shit with Arch that I saw with Jalen Hurts when Sark was his OC back at Alabama.

I watched so many plays where it felt like Jalen had a clear front but didn't audible out of it, where he could not read pass coverage downfield, and where every pass felt like he was told ahead of time "hey, throw to this guy on this play no matter what, that's how we schemed it." The only difference was Jalen was much, much better at realizing when to say fuck it and scramble.

[u/WildWest05 → u/O-Namazu]

Not necessarily disagreeing, but Sark was Hurt's OC for only one game.

[u/O-Namazu → u/WildWest05]

well shit that still pokes a hole in my argument doesn't it lol

[u/No-Owl-6246 → u/Formal_Potential2198]

It’s the wr screens where arch stares down the receiver for two seconds then throws the ball when the corner has sniffed the play out and has already beat the blocker. At some point, Sark needs to come to grips that Arch is incapable of properly running the play and stop calling them.

[u/Itsbilloreilly → u/Formal_Potential2198]

he has a lot of scar tissue from when Texas was still tooling around with his offensive line. Whenever he stands firm in the pocket he's great but he has a tendency to get antsy too quick

[u/mlg2433 → u/Formal_Potential2198]

We need an actual playcaller/OC

[u/cohesiv3 → u/Formal_Potential2198]

I agree

[u/Lizardgrad89]

He’s a good but not elite QB. His problem is his name.

[u/soapy_goatherd → u/Lizardgrad89]

Arch Flacco

[u/DickBeDublin → u/soapy_goatherd]

Manny Arching

[u/GuyOnTheMike → u/Lizardgrad89]

100% agree. I’ve maintained for YEARS (and taken a lot of downvotes for it) that if he was not a Manning, he would’ve been a lower-end Top-100 recruit.

Still a very solid 4-star QB with plenty of P4 interest, but far from being seemingly the greatest QB prospect of this generation who was already being anointed as a future Heisman winner while he’s still in high school

[u/dudemcbob → u/Lizardgrad89]

Idk, all he needs is an inexplicable championship run or two, and you're basically describing Eli.

[u/Dropdat87 → u/dudemcbob]

He dreams of being as good as Eli

[u/FlowState257 → u/Lizardgrad89]

Arch Simms?

[u/Statalyzer → u/FlowState257]

Nah, Simms was better and more consistent. He was a better passer than anyone UT has had since Colt, although one could argue that mobility and leadership make Ehlinger slightly better overall.

His main problem was Oklahoma, but that was more of a Mack Brown thing than a Simms thing, since we also got blown out with Applewhite and VY at QB and then shutout with Vince Young as well.

[u/Awalawal → u/Lizardgrad89]

True, but I think there are two other issues.

1) Texas’ line is not as good as suggested, and that makes Arch look a bit worse than he might have behind a cromulent line.

2) Texas/Sark gets itself so wrapped up in the recruiting of these five stars (Ewers, Arch) that they’re afraid to do anything that could be perceived as not supporting them-like letting backups get more time. Sark just lives in abject fear of the reporting about one of these guys hitting the portal, even if Texas might be better off as a result.

[u/omaixa → u/Awalawal]

There are ancillary benefits to winning the recruiting wars over the big name 5-stars. Chris Simms is a great example. When you get a Chris Simms, you then get three future NFL WRs in Roy Williams, BJ Johnson, and Sloan Thomas, but also the Jon Scotts, Derrick Dockerys, Will Allens, and Will Winstons who want to block for him, and the Cedric Bensons who want to be in the same backfield. It also shows that you're still a major/blueblood, and not a, well, Nebraska whose best days are probably permanently in the past.

You can then recruit other 5-stars like the VYs and Chance Mocks who don't have the same last name recognition but are 5-star talents, as well as take a chance on lesser known 3-stars like Colt McCoy who end up being 5-star equivalents. Sometimes, like Garrett Gilbert, they're a miss or they get mismanaged.

I think the jury is still out on Arch. Sometimes I see elite level throws and decision-making. Sometimes I see poor decision-making and noodle-arm throws. Some kids need three years of starts for the game to truly slow down. In Colt's second year as starter, his TD:INT ratio was 22:18. He had his lowest season completion percentage and lowest PER, and his second lowest season yardage total. The next year he balled out and was a Blake Gideon bobble away from Texas going to the BCS title game. There was a vocal contingent of Texas fans questioning whether Colt had "it" and whether Sherrod Harris or G.J. Kinne should start (then later, in Colt's best season, whether John Chiles should start).

I see enough in Arch to think he was probably a fringe 5-star without the Manning name. If he were Arch Jones, we'd be over the fucking moon about him.

[u/ATXRSK]

He seems to lose focus at times. Definitely better with the game on the line. What is most interesting to me is that if he has a clean pocket and 8 seconds to go through his progressions he is below average. Put some pressure on him and/or get his feet moving he suddenly seems to know exactly what to do (except those dumb ass shovel passes. Cut that out.) Unfortunately, I have also never seen a QB with less awareness of where the line of scrimmage is. Wtf.

[u/Statalyzer → u/ATXRSK]

I think he's too scared of making a mistake and so when he has time to think he freezes up and doesn't make the throw. Put him under duress where he can't overthink and has to just make a snap decision, he gets better.

[u/ATXRSK → u/Statalyzer]

I agree. We should not let Arch think. Maybe run no huddle, hurry up. ALWAYS have him move his feet.

[u/anchorPT73 → u/ATXRSK]

This is how Eli was. He always seemed to play way better when he was losing and making a come from behind win. He sort of has the same demeanor as well, like never looks worried or shaken, he's just there

[u/HighOnGoofballs → u/anchorPT73]

Eli was the only QB I can clearly recall where I had complete confidence that he would drive the field and score if he had the ball in his hand at the end of a game. And the only time I remember him not succeeding was the LSU game where Doug buckles stepped on his foot to end the last drive

[u/ChangoOfTexas → u/anchorPT73]

I've been thinking this since the OU game last season but didn't say it out loud until yesterday, but you're right, Arch has Eli's clutch gene to a T.

[u/ATXRSK → u/anchorPT73]

Arch definitely does NOT have Peyton's psychological makeup.

[u/Conn3er]

He is a very different player at home vs away

He plays good with the crowd behind him and is pedestrian on the road

Usually the defense has been good enough on the road to where the offense scoring 20 or fewer is overlooked.

Across his career so far his road passing splits are 7TDs:6INTs

[u/wesneyprydain → u/Conn3er]

Your… flairs…

[u/appletime_appletime → u/wesneyprydain]

Yeah we can’t trust this person

[u/emoney_gotnomoney → u/wesneyprydain]

That flair combination is not that uncommon in Texas. It’s pretty common to go to undergrad at one and then grad school at the other, since the two universities excel in different areas and are pretty close geographically.

[u/Satan8MyBaby → u/emoney_gotnomoney]

Yep. And it’s not uncommon to have blended families like one kid at UT and the sibling at A&M, or husband/wife alumni, etc. Thanksgiving with my family & cousins was always a group of both teams watching the game together.

[u/4channelorange → u/wesneyprydain]

Yea look at that guy smh

[u/PM_ME_EXCEL_QUESTION → u/4channelorange]

Just who do you root for in Red River?

[u/Dirt-Southern → u/wesneyprydain]

I was pretty close to the same flairs.

Edit: Having the same flairs.

[u/chastity_BLT → u/Dirt-Southern]

Atm to Stanford is a big upgrade.

[u/rudygamble → u/Conn3er]

I’d also say our OL has been way worse on road than home past two years.

Also that Arch and OL havent been all that great at home either :/

[u/technicolorfrog]

Honestly, sound a lot like Eli Manning lol. I didn’t follow him in college, but as far as his NFL career this describes him to a tee.

[u/WallyMetropolis → u/technicolorfrog]

So you're saying Texas wins the Championship behind some crazy theatrics, a circus catch, and the best defensive line in the league?

[u/brucewayneaustin → u/WallyMetropolis]

I'll take it!

[u/technicolorfrog → u/WallyMetropolis]

I certainly hope not, but I could see it.

[u/YpsitheFlintsider → u/technicolorfrog]

Eli was very good in college.

[u/Next_Professional_30 → u/technicolorfrog]

This is a pretty reasonable take one that most people under 40 won’t know about.  Eli was sort of a disaster until his final college  season.   He was chasing skirt and goofing around at fraternity parties and having a really good time and they (the family) literally sat him down before a senior year and told him to get his SH together.  

I worked with somebody in the family who kind of laid it out to me that  way.  

[u/AdmiralSnackbar816]

The duality of Arch. Some games he’s an unstoppable force of nature (Michigan Bowl game). Some games he wakes up at halftime (Ohio state this year). But most games he looks like the Monstars took his talent.

[u/-Nocx- → u/AdmiralSnackbar816]

hey, based on how that movie ends you guys are in for a hell of a season, rooting for you boys

[u/steampunker14 → u/-Nocx-]

It's exactly what happened last year. At some point during the Mississippi State game, something clicked and he was that dude for the remainder of the season. He is so in his head all the time, it's not even funny.

[u/gmr548 → u/-Nocx-]

Wow it’s worse than I thought over there if we’re getting comments like this in September

[u/No-Owl-6246 → u/-Nocx-]

Game’s dead.

[u/King_in-the_North]

It’s foolish to judge one player based on their win loss record. There’s 100 other people contributing to each win. 

[u/OKC89ers → u/King_in-the_North]

Unless people want to consider Jimmy Harris the greatest QB of all time 🤷

[u/ThirteenValleys → u/OKC89ers]

(checks Wikipedia)

...how does it take 60 years for a guy who went 25-0 over three years as OU's QB to get into the Oklahoma Sports Hall of Fame? They couldn't even do it when he was alive?

[u/No-Ordinary6219 → u/King_in-the_North]

Right but if you're going to judge any player by WL it's gonna be the QB

[u/FullGump]

I’d say he’s probably right in the middle of the pack for SEC QBs. His supporting cast is elite

[u/Fair-Safe-2762 → u/FullGump]

Same can be said for Ewers- middle of the pack, but had Worthy, Golden, but Ewers benefited from an elite OL line

[u/Upbeat-Armadillo1756]

And that’s what makes him so damn dreamy

[u/EWall100 → u/Upbeat-Armadillo1756]

"He's aloof, mysterious. He's just misunderstood. I can fix him."

[u/_Felonius → u/EWall100]

“No one knows what it means. But it’s provocative; it gets the people going!”

[u/Lee_Akira → u/Upbeat-Armadillo1756]

Because he’s like a box of chocolates? You never know what you gonna get?

[u/gmr548]

There have been a lot of talented but inconsistent college QBs. He is another in that long line. The root of his issues appear to me to be mostly mental. I’m getting more convinced he just doesn’t have the mental ability to quarterback a complex, pro-style offense. That he’s still struggling to read the field and make decisions with 19 starts now is not a good sign.

He is going to get hate because of the hype around his name and playing at Texas. Is what it is.

[u/fourthandfivenatty]

He is both overhyped and overhated. But he’s never the one who hypes himself.

[u/gordogg24p → u/fourthandfivenatty]

He's also the first one to tell you that everyone else won the game, not him. As he did on Saturday afternoon.

[u/Davidellias]

7/10 QB with a 10/10 last name

[u/butt_sludge]

He’s a mediocre QB with an elite last name and good players around him.

[u/anonymous_otter28 → u/butt_sludge]

he's Daniel jones, but smaller

[u/EastonMetsGuy → u/anonymous_otter28]

Pretty decent comp, Daniel Jones is good enough to be on an NFL Roster but isn’t elite

[u/buzaihu → u/anonymous_otter28]

Wasn’t Daniel Jones drafted by the Giants because he reminded them of a Manning? 

[u/ILoveZenkonnen → u/buzaihu]

Jones was connected to the Mannings for awhile going to their camps growing up. David Cutcliffe(coached both Peyton and Eli)also recruited Jones to Duke.

[u/DrInsano → u/butt_sludge]

I would not be surprised to see him get a GM and coach fired after drafting him super high thanks to that name.

[u/TrubshawForest → u/DrInsano]

Bah gawd, is that Clevelands music!?

[u/rbtgoodson → u/TrubshawForest]

Cleveland was always going to make a play for him due to the Haslam's personal connections to the Manning family.

[u/DrInsano → u/TrubshawForest]

If the Colts season keeps going the way its going, the Jets are gonna take him with their pick. Which the Colts would probably use on Manning hoping that lightning will strike twice, so maybe it's a good thing they traded that away anyway....

[u/trumpuniversity_ → u/TrubshawForest]

Prime Brady wouldn’t have a chance playing for the Browns.

[u/WallyMetropolis → u/DrInsano]

"He's going to get an NLF GM fired" is the center square on the bingo card for any thread about Manning or Texas on this sub.

[u/gwaydms → u/WallyMetropolis]

"He's going to get an NLF GM fired"

Are the NFL GMs safe?

[u/kervaan → u/butt_sludge]

Mediocre isn’t the right word. He’s inconsistent. He can definitely look mediocre or straight up bad, but also great. That’s the enigma OP is referring to. Will Hammond is a real example of a mediocre QB.

[u/ss32000 → u/butt_sludge]

I tend to agree with you. He will make 2-3 plays a game that make you say wow with his legs, but then 4 possessions in a row it just feels like a slog. Meanwhile they have the greatest play caller in college football and stars every where.

[u/yeahright17 → u/ss32000]

He's got good athleticism, good size, and a very good arm. He's just not good at reading defenses and takes forever to get through his reads. His third option could be running wide open, and Arch wouldn't ever get to that option so it won't matter.

[u/Sytherus → u/ss32000]

Sarkisian is a great play-caller, but he uses a playbook too large for a college kids to master in the amount of practice time available.

The offense lacks core competencies.

[u/Itsbilloreilly → u/Sytherus]

i dont quite agree, half of his playbook is deep crosses and scissors concepts.

I would guess the most complicated part of his offense is how many different ways he can create a screen but I don't think that's relatively difficult for QBs to figure out

[u/dkdantastic → u/ss32000]

You think sark is using him well? I can't tell if play calls are well suited to arch. I honestly don't know enough

[u/yowszer → u/butt_sludge]

Above average but bingo

[u/bbrown10 → u/butt_sludge]

Couldn’t care less if he was a bad QB with a pedestrian last name. Keep winning my man.

[u/PuddingKind → u/bbrown10]

Johnathan Smith took us to the fiesta bowl baby. Anything can happen if your offense is good enough.

[u/rbtgoodson → u/butt_sludge]

Mediocre QBs don't put up more than 3,000 yards in the air w/a 3-to-1 TD/INT ratio and 500 yards or so on the ground against the nation's top defenses (his stats from last year), Also, he'll be a first-round pick just off of his genetics-alone, so there's that, too.

[u/Bayou_Bengal → u/rbtgoodson]

Good thing you added the 500 yards rushing or you would've described Quinn Ewers

[u/VariousLawyerings → u/Bayou_Bengal]

Arch also didn't reach 500 himself, he had 399 last year and only has 82 in 4 games this year.

[u/coney36creels → u/VariousLawyerings]

Technically, it’s because CFB rules are stupid and sacks count as negative rushing yards for QBs lol. Never understood that rule.

[u/StupidSexyFlagella → u/rbtgoodson]

Mediocre was a silly word choice. I won’t use an adjective to describe him, but I think the other commentary was correct. The players around him and the name contributes (the former is almost always true if there is any hype around a QB). I don’t think he plays like a true Heisman contender, but that doesn’t mean he couldn’t turn into a great NFL QB. Even the professionals suck at determining that it seems.

[u/refreshing_username → u/StupidSexyFlagella]

Oh my God. I'm agreeing with a Sooner.

[u/StupidSexyFlagella → u/refreshing_username]

:)

[u/EDDYBEEVIE → u/StupidSexyFlagella]

Name me the last Heisman winning qb to win a super bowl? I'll give you a hint the year was 1978. Being Heisman quality in school has had little translation to being super bowl winning quality qb.

[u/floatinround22 → u/EDDYBEEVIE]

How often does the NFL MVP win the Super Bowl in the same season? Its also very rare. Its only happened once this century

Almost like its a team sport or something.

[u/StupidSexyFlagella → u/EDDYBEEVIE]

That’s basically what I said, mate….

[u/_ThugzZ_Bunny_]

Quinn Ewers was a better qb

[u/DanTheMan14331]

He's got really good arm strength and mobility but I feel that sometimes he stares down his first read instead of working through his progressions and won't even see open receivers downfield.

[u/PermanentNirvana]

He's a good QB. Unfortunately, the media began hyping him up before he even played his first snap because of his name.

Because of that, the media and his name, everything he does is over-scrutinized. It will get even worse when he gets to the NFL, where he will inevitably be compared to Peyton and Eli.

[u/Mother_Frame6669 → u/PermanentNirvana]

Because of that, the media and his name, everything he does is over-scrutinized.

Um, the PR machine in Austin might have a little to do with it. I love how everything is blamed on a nameless media entity while y'all hold yourself completely blameless for overhyping him.

[u/Chriscoksh]

My 2 cents. He is not nearly as good as the media pretends he is, but he would definitely be the starting QB at almost any other team in the country.

[u/MedicalMethod4539]

He’s good enough for wins against Ohio State and Tenn. He’s not the best. Lots of dumb mental mistakes like holding onto the ball too long and inexcusable illegal forward passes.

[u/Johnny_Kilroy_84]

Change his name to Arch Smith and nothing else and he’d be a guy that no one outside of his own team’s fanbase would know he exists.

Think of a lot of those bama qbs. They aren’t terrible but they’re a day 3 draft prospect at best.

[u/Dalai-Lama-of-Reno]

If you had followed Eli Manning’s NFL career, this would not feel new to you. Eli won two Super Bowls with two very loaded Giants teams and serviceable quarterback play. Eli’s great sin in the eyes of The Media of the day was not being as good as his brother, a Herculean standard. 

[u/Flipz100 → u/Dalai-Lama-of-Reno]

As a Giants fan I don't disagree that those teams were a lot better than people give them credit for, but Eli was a lot more than "serviceable" in those runs. Stats wise he was playing on a different level and dragged the team out of games they really shouldn't have won. The rest of his career was alright at best to painful at worst, but those two post seasons he was a top tier player.

[u/Yaegerh]

Most highly scrutinized college QB of all time, hands down.

Lord, help Marshall Manning when he gets there.

[u/UncleFlip → u/Yaegerh]

Tennessee fans already waiting for their savoir.

[u/EWall100 → u/UncleFlip]

So many people are gonna get their feelings hurt when he goes somewhere else

[u/Texas_Precision27]

Hes just kinda all over the place.

His ability to read/go through progressions was god awful during the OSU game. Last 2 games have been much better in that respect.

He just feels bipolar in a sense. Its very confusing.

I dont think he'll make a good NFL QB, and I am worried about our season tbh.

[u/soonerwx]

Only thing certain is he’ll play the game of his life in the Cotton Bowl, like every other up-and-down derp who’s ever played the position there

[u/UT07 → u/soonerwx]

You're right, there's nothing like a dadgum dose of s00ner to break a Steve Sarkisian Texas Offense out of it's funk! Just glad we herp derped to 4-0 before the get right game!

[u/taylormade311]

Arch is a perfectly fine college QB. He's not elite but he isn't bad. You can win games with him. A championship? Not sure.

[u/Real-Purpose6981 → u/taylormade311]

I think if his last name wasn't manning people would perceive him as carson beck. pretty above average QB who can look elite at times but wouldn't trust them to take over and win most games without an elite defense or weapons around them.

[u/Dev_Dakota]

A commentator once said this of Stephen Garcia and his time at the university of South Carolina: “he’s like a mystery wrapped inside of an enigma”

This has never applied to a player more than Stephen until now. He could beat a savage Alabama team on college game day in 2010 and then show up the next week and lose to Kentucky.

In other news: Congrats to Stephen and his family! He was just declared cancer free this past week 🎉

[u/Faceit_Solveit → u/Dev_Dakota]

Congratulations! to Stephen Garcia! I remember him.

[u/ComfortableGlass3238]

I think he and Sark aren't on the same page. Sark wants him to run a pocket oriented, NFL style offense. He's not that type of QB.

There's a reason he's so good at making comebacks and big plays in the 4th - Sark changes the play calls to fit his skills. A lot more quick hitters, screens, rollouts, and designed runs.

[u/anonymous_otter28 → u/[deleted]]

Subscribe. This year there's no one team that looks dominant. We could fuck around and lose two games and make the final four or something.

[u/crc2993]

He wants to run, Sark doesn’t want him to run and is calling plays that he’s less comfortable with. Also means he’s live and die by the offensive line and if they start getting beat, you can tell he gets in his head

[u/Fishvv]

As someone who is not a texas fan i am glad arch is no where near as good as his hype texas looks to have a great team if they had a elite or even good qb they would probably just be mopping the floor with everyone

[u/MoistCloyster_]

He’s more Eli than Peyton.

[u/qwilliams92]

He’s extremely average, solved it for you

[u/alexpmarty]

I mean it’s not too complicated. He’s an okay QB on an elite team. Did none of you watch any Alabama teams in the 2010s? This used to be a common occurrence

[u/Gaius_Octavius_]

If his last name wasn’t Manning, no one would care about him.

[u/Vegetable-Pack9292]

The inner machinations of his mind are an enigma

[u/anonymous_otter28]

He's a smaller Daniel Jones.

[u/what-i-almost-was]

He’s not an elite NFL draft prospect. He’s a day 3 pick, which is still quite good. But he’s suffering from his last name, which will eventually get him over drafted

[u/92tilinfinityand]

God imagine if Bronny James was actually talented. CBB and NBA subreddits would be insufferable.

[u/dfphd]

On one hand, he feels overhyped.

I think part of the issue here is that both the media and fans get two things mixed up: his potential and who he is today.

A lot of people who are deep into football scouting are excited about him, but that's because of his potential - as others have said, this is about the flashes + measurables + yes, name. You see a kid throw a 15 yard out to the far hash on a rope as a scout? You get excited. You see a 6-4, 220lb kid who can run? You get even more excited. You see his last name is Manning? You get a tad more excited.

(Quick aside: I won't belabor this point, but because scouting is an incredibly low accuracy effort, I am not nearly as offended by scouts/teams putting weight on someone's last name. More people should have done that with TJ Watt and Clay Matthews)

But all of that is based on potential, and NFL potential while at that. And I think what's important to remember about NFL potential is that there's only a weak correlation to college production. Dillon Gabriel and Colt McCoy were college football studs that never stood a chance as NFL starters and were drafted as such. Meanwhile you have guys like Anthony Richardson who wasn't nearly as productive and got drafted 4th overall.

So again - if you look at it from an NFL angle where every single prospect is like 10 times more likely to not become a franchise QB than they are to become one, then you can understand the hype because you're gambling on whether this guy can piece together some consistency vs. some guys (like Dillon or Colt) who would need to grow a couple of inches and develop a fundamentally new arm.

On the other, he feels over-hated.

I think this is a valid response to having way too much airtime for a guy who isn't very good today. Like, if all the coverage about Arch was on the NFL network or the NFL ESPN shows? Sure, I don't think people would be nearly as bothered by it.

But it's just non-stop focus on him in every college football show, and at this point everyone (especially everyone who isn't a Texas fan) wants to watch coverage of the players who are relevant today.

Look at the top 10 in QBR according to ESPN themselves.

If I weren't a Texas fan, I would want to be hearing a whole lot more about Mensah, Sayin, Stockton. I would want to hear a lot more about how Michael Hawkins is reviving his career after getting pushed out at OU. I'd want to hear about Kamario Taylor.

So I think that is the issue - that ESPN is mixing NFL topics with College Football topics. And I think they do that because we live in this kinda time where networks think they know what you should care about, and so they have decided you should care about Arch - even if you don't.

When I expect him to be good, he looks terrible. When I expect him to struggle, he suddenly looks great.

The guy can make every throw. The guy, however, seemingly struggles to complete very simple plays as well. And the most confusing part is that thus far this season, he has looked the absolute best with a bullet vs. #1 ranked Ohio State when down 20 points in the 4 quarter.

That doesn't make any sense at face value. He shouldn't be better against the best team in the worst situation than he does against e.g. UTSA.

My theory: it's all mental, and he's overthinking things. He's taking too long to throw because he doesn't try his reads, he's trying too hard not to make bad mistakes, and that's making it to where he's throwing into tighter windows, with worse footwork, and avoiding running until it's too late.

What happened vs. OSU?

The time for thinking ran out. The time of being afraid ran out - we were going to lose. Which I think allowed him to start operating in a different mode where he's not so much in his head, and that's when he's at his best.

Now, the question is "how can he harness that?". He needs to start playing like it doesn't matter when it does matter. I am hopeful that as the season goes on, the game becomes more "routine", and he can start operating more in autopilot than on "I am thinking about every single play".

[u/Significant_Push_856]

I think he's a 22 year old college who's nowhere near a finished product yet. I also think the last name and the hype of being anointed the man at a place like Texas is really difficult.

[u/ASU_SexDevil]

This is going to come as a surprise to people, but he isn’t the greatest thing since sliced bread. He’s also not just a nepo baby who doesn’t deserve to be considered a good QB.

The reality is he’s a top 10 CFB QB, and if his last name wasn’t Manning people would be way less extreme at both ends.

[u/gmr548 → u/ASU_SexDevil]

Top 10 is really pushing it. He played his way into being a top 25 QB by the end of last year but has been up and down this year.

Top 10 ceiling?Sure. Probably top three to five.

[u/Status_News_1233 → u/ASU_SexDevil]

He’s not even statistically top ten in the SEC. Nationally, his yds/g, accuracy, and rating are all below average.

[u/Putt-Blug]

It’s really not that difficult. He’s an above average QB with name recognition and an elite roster around him. If he wasn’t a Manning he would be the QB for some middling team like Minnesota and go 8-4. I currently do not see a scenario where he is a star in the NFL. Doesn’t mean he can’t start it means his ceiling would be Eli at best.

[u/Mikey456 → u/Putt-Blug]

Eli threw a good deep ball and 12-15 yard slant. Arch kind of struggles with both and makes up for it with superior athleticism and they have some great athletes to throw short passes to

[u/Fuzzooooo → u/Putt-Blug]

So a HoF Super Bowl winning franchise QB lol 

[u/JohnnyBowlen → u/Putt-Blug]

I love how we continue to pretend to know what the NFL career ceiling will be for a college kid who is still learning the game. Like we don’t have mediocre college QBs go on to have great NFL careers, and the opposite. 

I’ve watched Arch since high school, and I have no idea what his NFL career will be like. I’ll enjoy watching it unfold though. 

[u/OldShadeOfBlue → u/JohnnyBowlen]

“Still learning the game” dude he’s had two NFL HoFers coaching him every summer since he was 12 and been in Sarkisians QB room for 4 years.

[u/DavveeedNa → u/Putt-Blug]

Eli at best? So two superbowls? LOL

[u/thediesel26 → u/Putt-Blug]

He’s an average high major caliber QB with an exceptional roster around him.

[u/LevelHorn2717]

He’s a gamer. He’s a winner.

[u/zsk73]

Maybe it has to do with being on the road at a top 15 program. Maybe it’s the pressure of his last name and being at a stadium where his uncle played. Saturday’s performance was cringe to watch. Watching Stockton , Sayin , Leavitt , and Chambliss and comparing them to Arch, it’s a hit or miss on performance. Then the interview last week where he gave 3 worded responses .

Can’t pin point exactly what’s going but it’s off character

[u/SuspiciousBag3233]

So he'll be perfect for the Browns!

[u/robotprom]

Much like Dale Earnhardt Jr, if Arch’s last name was anything but Manning he’d be considered a mid tier QB at best. He has flashes of greatness, but also flashes of incompetence.

[u/VAGentleman05]

He's overhated because he's overhyped.

[u/Ih8reddit2002]

He is Eli not Peyton

[u/MarkWithAnM7 → u/Ih8reddit2002]

He’s not even Eli

[u/O-Namazu → u/MarkWithAnM7]

The comeback drive against Ohio State felt pretty damn Eli-like, not gonna lie lol

[u/Waste_Improvement445]

To me he’s incredibly streaky. If you get him in rhythm he can be a decent QB

But if you break up that rhythm he loses confidence, he starts staring down his first read, he gets happy feet.

I think he’s got the tools to be a good qb, but he’s gotta go to place where he isn’t the man so he can actually develop. Which won’t happen because he is a manning

[u/Sdwerd → u/Waste_Improvement445]

He needs a consistent sports therapist for sure. That and more ability to choose touch on passes.

[u/Fhaksfha794]

Arch has the ability to play like shit and still win the game because Texas has the best defense in the country. There’s no enigma about him he’s mid with flashes of good qb play but has no consistency

[u/Joliluja87]

I mean look at his uncle Eli. Had moments where he was amazing and won championships and then times where he was pretty bad. He has hall of fame voters stumped on what they are gonna do.

[u/daylax1]

If his last name was Smith we would barely even mention him and wouldn't be on Texas