The Texas Longhorns’ strong first half against the Kansas State Wildcats on Saturday led to plenty of jokes about the status of highly-touted freshman Arch Manning.
As expected, redshirt freshman Maalik Murphy got the nod at quarterback for the Longhorns in place of injured Quinn Ewers, and Murphy lit it up. He went 7/11 in the first quarter for 152 yards and a touchdown, which came on a perfect 37-yard pass.
🗣️ "The Murph put the biscuit in the basket" @TexasFootball strikes first after a perfect throw by Maalik Murphy 🤘🔥 pic.twitter.com/zb9eUfnk3s
— FOX College Football (@CFBONFOX) November 4, 2023
Murphy’s excellent play sparked plenty of social media jokes about the future of Manning, a true freshman in his first season with the team. Most of the jokes centered around Murphy playing so well that Manning would never have a pathway to start, prompting tongue-in-cheek debate about potential transfer destinations.
https://twitter.com/DeshawnAPouper/status/1720848358376653280
Arch Manning and Nick Saban in the transfer portal pic.twitter.com/5Wr7L9BsEg
— m1ghtysauc3 (@m1ghtysauc3) November 4, 2023
https://twitter.com/BigOleBear1310/status/1720845960870309914
https://twitter.com/THELudacliff/status/1720843298212880684
It is worth noting that Murphy’s play in the second quarter tailed off a bit, but that didn’t stop the semi-serious speculation. The Longhorns still led 17-7 at halftime and won 33-30 in overtime.
For 2023, the Longhorns are focused on preserving Manning’s redshirt status. That means Murphy will keep getting reps as long as Ewers is injured, giving him a chance to make Manning’s life complicated going forward.
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