Arch Manning named ‘college football’s most average QB’

Texas Longhorns star quarterback Arch Manning might be the most high-profile player in college football thanks to his famous last name, but the reality is that his stats just do not reflect his superstardom, and one columnist dug into that this week.

Following Texas’ 27-24 loss to unranked Oklahoma in a game where Manning struggled mightily, throwing a crucial late-game interception, Jason Kirk of The Athletic dubbed the Texas quarterback “college football’s most average QB” in his Until Saturday newsletter. And he brought the numbers to back it up.

‘We’d be praising the guy’

Manning threw two late interceptions in the Red River Rivalry loss, including a pick-six and one that set up Oklahoma’s game-winning field goal. He finished 19-for-31 for 260 yards and three touchdowns.

Needless to say, the loss brought another wave of criticism for Manning, leading head coach Steve Sarkisian to defend his quarterback at his Monday press conference, via On3.

The Texas coach argued that “if you took the name off the back of his jersey” and pictured “Joe Smith playing quarterback at the University of Texas,” people would see things differently.

Sarkisian noted that “here’s a guy who’s beaten four Top-10 ranked teams in his last 13 starts” and said, “we’d be praising the guy.”

“But the expectations are high for him. He understands that. The expectations are high for all of us,” Sarkisian added.

‘He really just plays like a Joe Smith’

Kirk actually agreed with Sarkisian’s comparison, but not in the way the Texas coach intended.

“The coach’s choice of ‘Joe Smith’ as a blind-test code name for Manning turns out to be really apt,” Kirk wrote in his column this week.

“‘Joe Smith’ fits Manning because, despite how frequently it has felt like he is the most promising or overrated or over-hated QB ever, he really just plays like a ‘Joe Smith,'” he added.

Kirk pointed out that the average passer rating among this year’s 138 FBS teams is 142.25. Manning’s is 143.31, which Kirk called “an almost perfectly middle-of-the-road” number.

Manning ranked No. 42 in passer rating last season, behind Kansas’ Jalon Daniels. This year, he’s No. 64, behind Oklahoma’s John Mateer.

While Manning might be a very polarizing figure in college football, the reality is that he is just an average college quarterback. Which, as Kirk points out, rarely means “boring” in college football. Instead, average in college football usually leads to chaos from inconsistency.

“Great throw! Awful throw! Good idea! WHAT ARE YOU THINKING? Back and forth, all adding up to a high-variance median, just like Mateer … and just like Manning,” Kirk wrote.

“So, yeah, Arch isn’t the greatest QB ever. The 22-year-old is also far from the worst at this level,” he wrote.

Run Game Struggles

Kirk did offer one argument in Manning’s favor. The Texas defense ranks No. 9 in yards per play under Will Muschamp, while Sarkisian’s offense sits at No. 104.

“Texas has been much, much worse at running the ball than passing it. Tough to throw without a run threat, no matter what your name is,” Kirk wrote.

The Longhorns’ rushing attack ranked No. 84 last season. Despite a big portal haul, it has dropped to No. 117 this year.

“We’ve got to continue to run the ball better so it’s not all on his shoulders,” Sarkisian said after Saturday’s loss.

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