Texas QB Arch Manning Heisman Trophy odds run wild as he dismantles UTSA in place of injured Quinn Ewers
Quinn Ewers had the Texas Longhorns dominating UTSA on Saturday night early in the game, but his night was stopped short as he sustained a reported abdominal injury. For most teams that might spell trouble, but not Texas. As soon as Arch Manning stepped onto the field the Longhorns offense exploded, not missing a beat. […]
Quinn Ewers had the Texas Longhorns dominating UTSA on Saturday night early in the game, but his night was stopped short as he sustained a reported abdominal injury. For most teams that might spell trouble, but not Texas. As soon as Arch Manning stepped onto the field the Longhorns offense exploded, not missing a beat. So much so that Manning's Heisman Trophy odds ran absolutely wild across all the major sports books almost immediately.
Why? Manning's performance was legendary.
Arch Manning's first pass of the night was an immediate 19-yard touchdown throw to DeAndre Moore Jr. that extended the Longhorns lead to 21-0. His next play? A 67-yard rushing touchdown where he left the entire UTSA defense in his dust, reaching 20.7 miles per hour on the play.
After that incredible rushing play Manning's momentum slowed for a couple drives, but then he found Isaiah Bond for a 51-yard touchdown (where Bond admittedly did most of the leg work). And just when it looked like Texas might bring QB3 into the game his very next pass was a deep shot to true freshman phenom Ryan Wingo for a 75-yard score.
Arch Manning's final drive of the night included two more impressive completions. One to Ryan Wingo for another 36 yards. And then his fourth passing touchdown of the night came on a 12-yard touchdown pass to speedy wide receiver Johntay Cook.
Manning concluded his dominant showing with a stat line of 9/12 passing (75% completion rate), 223 passing yards, four passing touchdowns, three carries for 53 rushing yards, and a rushing score. A truly immaculate stat line with five total touchdowns.
Before Manning even stepped off the field for the last time on Saturday all the major sports books had already made their moves. Arch Manning Heisman Trophy odds leaped from 150 to 1 all the way up to 16 to 1 at most sports books. That makes Manning the seventh most likely quarterback to win the Heisman as of this writing according to FanDuel.
Meanwhile, Quinn Ewers dropped from the odds-on favorite at 5 to 1 to completely off the board at most books until there's more clarity as to his health status.
This may seem like a major overreaction given that Arch Manning's performance came against a lowly UTSA team that is much weaker than usual, but given the hype train that was already rolling it makes quite a bit of sense. We'll learn more on Quinn Ewers' status in the coming days from head coach Steve Sarkisian, but the question on everyone's mind will loom large quickly. Will Arch Manning replace Quinn Ewers even when he is completely healthy? And if not, will fans stay patient? We'll be back with more details as they emerge.
Arch Manning hype goes into overdrive after Quinn Ewers’ injury as Texas football cruises vs. UTSA
Quinn Ewers, the current Heisman frontrunner, out with ‘strained abdomen’ but Arch Manning accounts for four TDs in blowout
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