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ESPN Analyst Says Arch Manning, Texas Got 'Belichick-ed' By Ohio State, Matt Patricia

The Buckeyes new defensive coordinator made life hard for the Manning prodigy this weekend.

Mike Kadlick

Arch Manning struggled against Ohio State's defense on Saturday.
Arch Manning struggled against Ohio State's defense on Saturday. / Adam Cairns/Columbus Dispatch / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images
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Arch Manning and No. 1 Texas struggled to get anything going offensively in their Week 1 14-7 loss to No. 3 Ohio State. The Longhorns' offense scored just seven points and were just 1-for-5 on fourth down, while Manning completed 17-of-30 passes for 170 yards, one touchdown, and a back-breaking second-half interception.

The Buckeyes' defense, now led by long-time Patriots assistant Matt Patricia, dominated—reminding football fans again of the bearded genius with a pencil stuffed behind his ear, rather than the Bill Belichick disciple shoe-horned into calling offensive plays for Mac Jones.

On that note, during Monday morning's edition of ESPN's Get Up!, analyst Dan Orlovsky used the perfect analogy to describe what the new OSU defensive coordinator did to Manning, the Longhorns, and head coach Steve Sarkisian:

"Arch Manning and Sark got Bill Belichick-ed," he explained. "... Arch will not see another defense that is as sophisticated, as complicated, [and] as much as they change pre-snap to post-snap. I'm not telling America that Arch didn't have some misses. Of course he had some misses. Mechanically, he got worse as the game went on. [But] that game, in specific to Arch, went the way it did because of Matt Patricia for Ohio State, and that Ohio State secondary."

It was quite the full-circle moment for Patricia, who for years helped New England draw up game plans to defend the likes of Peyton and Eli Manning, only to now have put their nephew into a tizzy.

Ohio State's journey to try and repeat as national champions will continue next Saturday with a home game against Grambling State at 3:30 p.m. ET.

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Mike Kadlick
MIKE KADLICK

Mike Kadlick is a contributor to the Breaking and Trending News team at Sports Illustrated. Before joining SI in November 2024, he covered the New England Patriots for WEEI sports radio in Boston and continues to do so for CLNS Media. He has a master's in public relations from Boston University. Kadlick is also an avid runner and a proud lover of all things pizza.

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