No. 2 Texas 56, UTSA 7 final score: Arch Manning accounts for five TDs in blowout win

Manning was sensational in the most extended playing time of his career.

AUSTIN, Texas — The non-conference season marches on for the No. 2 Texas Longhorns as head coach Steve Sarkisian’s program tries to avoid a letdown against the UTSA Roadrunners at Darrell K Royal-Texas Memorial Stadium on Saturday in Austin following last week’s dominant win over the then-No. 10 Michigan Wolverines.

Head coach Jeff Traylor and his Roadrunners are in the opposite position — trying to bounce back from the 49-10 destruction by the Bobcats in San Marcos, arguably the worst loss of Traylor’s tenure in San Antonio.

Texas is favored by 35.5 points, according to FanDuel, in the second all-time matchup between the two programs separated by just over 80 miles. The Horns won the first game, 41-20, in 2022.

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Pregame

Before the Longhorns and Roadrunners came out for the final warmups before kickoff, the focus turned to the injury situation at Texas with the school announcing that junior running back Jaydon Blue (ankle), redshirt sophomore defensive tackle Aaron Bryant (knee), and sophomore safety Jelani McDonald will all miss Saturday’s game.

Blue suffered a right ankle injury in the first quarter against Michigan before returning late in the first half. When Bryant and McDonald suffered their injuries is less clear.

Freshman safety Xavier Filsaime is also not dressed for the Longhorns.

Here are the Texas captains for today’s game, a group that includes redshirt junior edge Trey Moore, who spent his first three seasons at UTSA:

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First quarter

UTSA received the opening kickoff and got off to a quick start as quarterback Owen McCown connected with burly tight end Oscar Cardenas for an 11-yard gain, but then stalled just as quickly, throwing a wide receiver screen on 3rd and 9 that gained three yards before punting, an angled kick away from Texas senior wide receiver Silas Bolden that went out of bounds at the 16-yard line.

On a play-action roll out left, Texas redshirt junior quarterback Quinn Ewers hit junior wide receiver Matthew Golden for 11 yards, then threw a shorter pass to junior wide receiver Isaiah Bond, who gained identical yardage after making the first defender miss. Longhorns head coach Steve Sarkisian dialed up a shot play on the next snap with Ewers targeting Golden on a post route instead of Bond on a double move with the pass falling incomplete as a result.

Sticking to the air, Ewers connected with freshman wide receiver Ryan Wingo over the middle for 16 yards before throwing a quick pass to Bond for another 16-yard gain. A push pass to sophomore wide receiver DeAndre Moore Jr. didn’t even count as as the first run play for the Horns and only gained one yard. Again throwing a quick pass, Ewers hit redshirt freshman wide receiver Ryan Niblett, who used a block by senior tight end Gunnar Helm to pick up 15 yards.

Looking for a wheel route to sophomore running back Quintrevion Wisner, Ewers settled for a throw to senior tight end Juan Davis coming across the middle as the Roadrunners were flagged for holding sophomore wide receiver Johntay Cook on the other side of the field. Ewers finished the drive with a run-pass option delivered to Bond for a seven-yard touchdown.

After allowing a six-yard gain on the first play of UTSA’s second drive, the defense started to swarm with junior edge Trey Moore chasing down a play from the backside and senior Jack end Barryn Sorrell blowing up the ensuing 3rd and 3 run for a six-yard loss.

Looking for a punt block, Texas came close to getting it, settling for the pressure contributing to a 32-yard punt.

On the first throw by Ewers after hitting his hand on a UTSA defender delivering the touchdown pass to Bond, the Roadrunners came up with an interception when Ewers sailed the pass with some help from his footwork completely breaking down on the check-down attempt.

Two runs by UTSA picked up nine yards, with Texas using its first timeout of the first half when the Longhorns had trouble getting the right personnel on the field. A big play from sophomore linebacker Anthony Hill Jr. filling the inside run on third down and another big play by super senior linebacker David Gbenda and redshirt junior safety Michael Taaffe produced a turnover on downs with some help from super senior cornerback Jahdae Barron, who forced the runner inside.

A false start by junior right guard DJ Campbell putt the Longhorns behind the chains, where they stayed on the next two downs thanks to a short run by sophomore running back Quintrevion Wisner and a short gain by Golden on a quick throw. With UTSA in man coverage and the Texas receivers locked up, Ewers scrambled for seven yards, allowing Sarkisian to go for it on 4th and 3, a conversion thanks to Bond coming open on a crossing route and gaining for an 18-yard gain.

Poised in the pocket looking for a shot play, Ewers settled for a check down to Wisner for nine yards. The sophomore running back moved the chains with a two-yard gain and Ewers followed it by hitting Bolden for nine yards against soft coverage. Once again, Wisner gained the yardage for a fresh set of downs, hitting a small seam on outside zone. Replaced by freshman running back Jerrick Gibson, the power back from Florida got into the open field behind two pulling blocks and punished the UTSA defensive back in the hole for 11 yards.

Into the red zone, Bolden wasn’t able to get free in the flat on a play that resulted in junior left tackle Kelvin Banks staying down on the field, then pointing to his right shoulder as he walked off under his own power. The drive appeared to truly stall when junior right tackle Cam Williams was called for a false start and a swing pass intended for Niblett turned into a fumble and a loss of six yards. But Sarkisian dialed up the right play call, a slant to Cook that found space and quickly turned into a 19-yard touchdown and a 14-0 lead.

It was Cook’s first touchdown for the Longhorns.

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Second quarter

With UTSA looking like it wanted to avoid long-developing passing plays in the the first quarter, the second quarter opened with the Roadrunners trying to hit a shot play on a fake screen that led to the first sack of Texas sophomore linebacker Liona Lefau’s career and the third punt by the visitors following a third-down screen pass.

To open the Texas drive, Ewers connected with Helm down the sideline with Helm finishing his career-long 49-yard reception by hurdling a UTSA defender.

After handing the ball off on next play, Ewers motioned to the Longhorns sideline and then went down on the field, eventually leaving under his own power as redshirt freshman quarterback Arch Manning quickly got loose to enter the game.

Manning wasted no time throwing a touchdown, connecting with Moore on a play-action rollout for a 19-yard score, the first of Moore’s career, and a 21-0 lead for the Longhorns.

With the game threatening to become a rout despite the injuries for Texas, UTSA responded with a 22-yard pass and a 53-yard touchdown run by Robert Henry, who was able to outrun the angle by sophomore safety Derek Williams.

But then Manning pulled the ball on a rare zone read call by Sarkisian and raced 67 yards for a touchdown, his second on three plays.

The Roadrunners continued to find some momentum on offense, converting a fourth down before Longhorns sophomore cornerback Manny Muhammad required medical attention after going down on the field. Then McCown scrambled for a first down and the Texas defense was in need of regrouping.

Freshman edge Colin Simmons helped the Horns do exactly that with consecutive tackles to force 3rd and 7 with McCown unable to connect with his intended receiver over the middle after being forced from the pocket. UTSA missed the ensuing 39-yard field goal attempt.

The third drive by Manning didn’t go as smoothly, losing four yards on a pulled zone read and then suffering a sack on third down that forced a punt, the first of the day for the Longhorns.

The defense continued to regain its footing with junior Jack end Ethan Burke recording a tackle for loss, Muhammad returning to break up a pass, and senior defensive tackle Vernon Broughton drawing a holding penalty that Texas declined thanks to a completion on the play short of the marker.

Typically aggressive, Sarkisian called a shot play out of the end zone after the Longhorns got backed up because of a block-in-the-back penalty on junior tight end Amari Niblack on the punt by the Roadrunners, but Manning took a big hit as he delivered a throw that came close to being intercepted. A strong run by Gibson for 10 yards moved the chains and sent Texas into the two-minute warning timeout.

Manning’s second pass of the drive went wide of Moore for another incompletion and his third was nearly intercepted when UTSA looked ready for the tunnel screen. The drive ended on a nine-yard reception by Gibson that ended with Sarkisian calling for a facemask penalty because Gibson’s facemask was pulled, resulting in an opposing player jawing with the Texas coach down 28-7.

UTSA made a last-ditch attempt to score before halftime, calling its three timeouts, but went into halftime without coming close to the end zone. In an interview with ESPN, Sarkisian said that Ewers has a “strained abdomen.”

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Third quarter

With the ball to start the second half, Texas gained seven yards on a run by Gibson and moved the chains on third down when Manning hit Golden over the middle and broke a tackle for a 20-yard gain. After Gibson was stopped for a three-yard loss, Bond scored a 51-yard touchdown when he took a quick pass from Manning, turned the corner behind a bevy of blockers, and scored easily from 51 yards out thanks to his world-class speed.

Texas senior safety Andrew Mukuba put UTSA behind the chains on the first-down play, reading the swing pass to the running back and closing quickly for a four-yard loss. A short run on second down led to 3rd and 11 for the Roadrunners with the Longhorns forcing a dump down on a crossing route tackled for a gain of two yards.

Manning wasted little time scoring again when UTSA blew a coverage that allowed Wingo to get wide open deep over the middle and the Texas quarterback didn’t miss, connecting for a 75-yard touchdown and a 42-7 lead.

It was the longest catch by a Texas wide receiver since Xavier Worthy opened the 2021 Oklahoma game with a 75-yard score.

UTSA mounted a sustained drive on its next possession by staying ahead of the chains until freshman edge Colin Simmons screamed off the edge for a sack on 3rd and 7 to force a missed 54-yard field-goal attempt by the Roadrunners.

Late in the third quarter, Gibson was moving the ball for Texas as Sarkisian turned to the ground game, but lost a fumble recovered by UTSA. When the Longhorns quickly got the ball back, Gibson responded with an 11-yard run to end the third quarter.

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Fourth quarter

Manning still had some heroics left in him, hitting Wingo for a 36-yard gain on an impressive catch by the freshman receiver, then throwing a dime to Cook for a 12-yard touchdown, Manning’s fifth of the game.

Manning left the game in favor of freshman Trey Owens after going 9-of-12 passing for 223 yards and four touchdowns in addition to his 67-yard touchdown run.

Texas closed the game strong defensively when Burke came up with a 30-yard interception return touchdown for the 56-7 final.