Texas redshirt freshman quarterback Arch Manning broke a scoreless tie against Texas A&M in a game with massive SEC implications.
Manning came in for starting quarterback Quinn Ewers for a designed carry on 4th-and-2 from Texas A&M’s 15-yard line, and he scored after toeing the sideline and hitting the pylon before going out of bounds.
Texas and Texas A&M are meeting for the 110th time and the first since 2011, Texas A&M’s last year as a Big 12 member.
The winner plays College Football Playoff No. 7 Georgia (10-2, 6-2 in SEC) in next Saturday’s SEC Championship Game.
Manning appeared in six games this season entering Week 14, including starts against UL Monroe (5-7, 3-5 in Sun Belt) and Mississippi State (2-10, 0-8 in SEC) in September after Ewers suffered an abdominal injury.
He also played against Georgia but was pulled after an ineffective second-quarter sequence.
His touchdown run against the Aggies marks his most prominent play since joining the Longhorns as a freshman last season as the top-ranked recruit in the 2023 class. (h/t 247 Sports)
Manning is in line to succeed Ewers at quarterback next year, and any meaningful snaps he gets before then should make the 2025 transition easier.
He looked more than ready for the promotion on his touchdown run.