Texas coach Steve Sarkisian stood behind struggling star quarterback Arch Manning with one significant qualifier.
Sarkisian said Manning is the QB1 for the Longhorns. But after Texas has lost two straight games to fall from the No. 1 spot in the AP poll, a report from ESPN indicated quarterback KJ Lacey Jr. would receive a larger portion of first-team reps in practice ahead of the team’s home game against No. 7 Ole Miss on Saturday.
“There’s no doubt about it, Arch can play better for us, but he’s our starter,” Sarkisian said of Manning, the grandson of NFL legend Archie Manning and nephew of Peyton and Eli Manning. “We need to see a better version of him this week.
“The player is in there. It’s our job to get it out of him.”
Sarkisian did say that Lacey will get some snaps with the first-team offense in practice. However, that won’t be a change from the normal routine. A four-star prospect in the 2025 recruiting class, Lacey has appeared in three games over the 2025-26 seasons, completing 8 of 9 passes for 70 yards and carrying the ball twice for 3 yards.
Manning, the No. 1 overall recruit in the Class of 2023, has played a large role in the Longhorns (4-2, 1-2 Southeastern Conference) losing consecutive regular-season games for the first time since 2021 the last two weeks. He had three combined turnovers in the fourth quarter of Texas’ losses to Oklahoma and Florida.
In six games this season, he has 11 touchdowns and five interceptions, ranking 11th among SEC quarterbacks in passing yards (1,295). His indecisiveness has also played in Texas allowing 17 sacks this season, tied for 11th most in the SEC.
Sarkisian said Saturday after the Longhorns blew a lead to fall to Texas that he was planning to evaluate “everything.”
Manning came to practice with a chip on his shoulder, Sarkisian said, and had a renewed focus.
“I liked it,” Sarkisian said.
The offense wasn’t the only issue in the Florida loss, though. Sarkisian pointed to a pair of conversions — one on fourth-and-12, another on third-and-7 — as letdowns for the defense that left the entire team frustrated.
“The key to drill moving forward now is to have the constructive conversations. We’ve had those,” Sarkisian said. “We’ve had those. I credit our players (Sunday) and our staff (Monday) for being receptive and coachable in those conversations. Look, we’ve all got to be part of the solution. Let’s be part of the solution. We’re 4-2. Let’s go 1-0 this week.
“I’ve been preaching this now for five years. There’s not a game on any Saturday in the SEC where any team can’t beat the other team.”