The Real Issue with the Texas Longhorns is Obvious, and it's Not Arch Manning

Heading into the 2025 season, a main area of concern for the Texas Longhorns revolved around their younger, less experienced offensive line.

Now, five games later, the severity of this weakness seems to have fully revealed itself.

While quarterback Arch Manning isn’t blameless, Brooks Austin of “The Film Guy Network” revealed his take on Texas’ offensive struggles in a recent episode.

Was it Manning or his lack of protection?

Texas Longhorns quarterback Arch Mannin — Florida Jamari Lyons takes down Texas quarterback Arch Manning (16) during the second half an NCAA football game in Gainesville, FL on Saturday, October 4, 2025. [Alan Youngblood/Gainesville Sun] | Alan Youngblood/Gainesville Sun / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

Manning still has decision-making issues to work through. That much is clear. However, whether or not it was his shortcomings that cost the Longhorns the game remains up for debate.

In the eyes of Austin, the offensive line ought to absorb the most significant portion of the blame. He diagnosed the main issue as a lack of athleticism.

“Y’all [the Longhorns] don’t have the athletes required to be out here stretching SEC defensive linemen,” Austin said. “Y’all have big bodies. That’s why some of the scouting selections are very, very weird to me. Y’all need to be out here recruiting nothing but athletes.”

Granted, Texas lost four of its five starters at the position following the 2024 season, which would hurt any team. However, five games into the season, it seems that a poor performance is no longer tolerable.

With the amount of money Texas has to put towards recruitment, possessing a weak offensive line isn’t acceptable, Austin argues. The group recorded multiple penalties, including two consecutive false start penalties by offensive tackle Nick Brooks during a crucial fourth quarter drive.

They also found themselves unable to meaningfully help the Longhorns’ running game, as they left Gainesville with just 52 rushing yards. They couldn’t pull through in the bigger moments, which was on full display in The Swamp.

Manning’s efforts

Manning misread a few key situations on the field, but ultimately, Austin found that the redshirt sophomore lacked a pocket to protect him and give him more time to find his receivers.

“All of the criticism that I’m lofting at him, that the television copy was lofting at him, any of it gets thrown in the garbage the moment you see what’s happening,” he said. “I thought it was just like ‘oh, pocket is collapsing.’ No, there was no pocket.”

This group has a long way to go in terms of proving itself, and it’s going to be a steep uphill battle for Texas’ offense to get back in the good graces of its fans.

That being said, the opportunity for the first step towards redemption will take place in Dallas on Oct. 11, in the Red River Rivalry matchup against the Oklahoma Sooners.