What Does A Matthew Caldwell-Led Texas Offense Look Like?

Texas quarterback Arch Manning was on track to have one of his best performances this season before exiting after the first play in overtime due to a concussion.

Manning has been the focal point of the Texas offense and has received both a lot of the praise and a lot of the blame for the Longhorns’ performances. With Manning likely out against the highly-ranked Vanderbilt Commodores, backup Matthew Caldwell will take the reins of the offense with Texas’ College Football Playoff hopes on the line.

With the stakes through the roof, here’s a look at what the Longhorns’ offense could look like under Caldwell.

Matthew Caldwell: Texas Longhorns QB1

Texas Longhorns head coach Steve Sarkisian looks on during warm ups prior to the game against the Mississippi State Bulldogs at Davis Wade Stadium at Scott Field. | Petre Thomas-Imagn Images

When Caldwell took over for Manning in overtime against the Mississippi State Bulldogs on the road with cowbells blaring, he showed no signs of panic and exuded confidence. Once the final whistle blew, Caldwell finished with a perfect stat line: 1-of-1 through the air for 10 yards and the game-winning touchdown. What makes the play even more impressive is the fact that Caldwell checked the play at the line of scrimmage and hot-routed wide receiver Emmett Mosley to the fade that would ultimately win the game.

After coming through in the most important moment of the season so far, there is no doubt that head coach Steve Sarkisian will have the utmost confidence in his experienced backup.

"He's got this,” Sarkisian said, per Inside Texas. “[Caldwell says] 'I've been at Gardner-Webb. I've been at Troy. Now I'm at Texas? I'm going to take advantage of every opportunity that I get.'"

During Caldwell’s season at Troy, he had appeared in 10 games and completed 63.2 percent of his passes for 1,608 yards, 13 touchdowns and eight interceptions. He was also a capable rusher, accounting for five scores with his legs. Although he has had plenty of experience, Vanderbilt will by far be the toughest opponent he has ever faced.

With Manning out, Sarkisian will likely look to lean on screen passes and RPOs to get the ball to his playmakers in space. The quicker the ball can get out of Caldwell’s hands, the more successful the offense can be.

One of the biggest factors in the upcoming game will likely be the performance of wide receiver Ryan Wingo, who struggled early in the win over the Bulldogs but finished with a career day. The better Wingo plays, the easier Caldwell can be successful.

Texas and Vanderbilt will kick off from Austin on Saturday at 11 a.m. CT.