Jordan Rodgers reveals growth he has seen in Arch Manning following preseason criticism

Arch Manning will get his first chance to play on a big stage again this weekend when No. 9 Texas opens conference play tomorrow afternoon in The Swamp. Is he now ready for it, though, based on what we’ve seen over his debut month?

Jordan Rodgers broke down where Manning is in his growth, going into his first league game this year in Gainesville, while on ‘Get Up’ on Friday morning. He thinks he’s headed in a much better direction with his play, namely coming off what he did in Texas’ last non-conference game before the bye in a 55-point shutout of Sam Houston State.

“Well, he’s going to have to continue to build off some of the success that we saw against Sam Houston State,” Rodgers said. “I realize it’s Sam Houston State, but the week before against UTEP? He looked bad – 11-25, only completed 44% of his passes.

“What I’ve seen from Arch is development and progression with his fundamentals. His feet are in the right spot. He’s stepping into throws. He’s not trying to leave his feet wide and sidearm in there. His feet are better. His consistency and accuracy has gone up.”

Manning hasn’t lived up to much of anything yet based on his first four games this season. He completed 61.3% of his throws for 888 yards, nine touchdowns, and three interceptions, while also rushing for 123 yards and five more scores. That’s been fine, but not what many around the sport expected from him until his last outing against the Bearkats.

In that 55-0 win two weeks ago, Manning looked the best he has at 18-21 (85.7%) for 309 yards, three touchdowns, and no picks while also having two rushing scores. It did come against one of the only teams currently still winless in the FBS, but it was more of what we actually wanted to start to see from him in Austin.

Now, Manning, in his first conference start as the full-time starter and one that’ll come on the road, will need to be that player against Florida on Saturday. The Gators, despite their own start at 1-3, are capable of being a problem for the Longhorns, with Rodgers noting the quarterback run game as something Texas may need to see.

“He’s going to need that against Florida. This is a really good defense. They play a ton of bracket coverage, which means they take away the inside throws. They force you to work the perimeter,” Rodgers said. “The run game for Arch, him using his feet? That’s the X-factor. We saw it come alive against Sam Houston State. We saw the swagger, the confidence after a couple of runs. ‘Sark needs to get him going early with his feet.”

The first primetime opportunity did not go well whatsoever for Manning against Ohio State in Columbus. However, with how he has progressed the past month, this could be a big moment to better showcase himself in his team’s conference opener against the Gators.