Longhorns Open As Massive Favorites Over Louisiana-Monroe

The Longhorns are big favorites to pull off another home win on Saturday.

Sep 14, 2024; Austin, Texas, USA; Texas Longhorns quarterback Arch Manning (16) reacts after scoring a touchdown during the first half against the Texas-San Antonio Roadrunners at Darrell K Royal-Texas Memorial Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Scott Wachter-Imagn Images | Scott Wachter-Imagn Images

AUSTIN - Texas is heading to the last non-conference game on the season with a different look.

After Quinn Ewers' suffered an injury against UTSA, he is now listed as questionable heading into Week 2.

As a result, Arch Manning is likely set to be the Longhorns' starting quarterback. Could Manning keep the undefeated streak up in another dominant win?

The odds say yes. FanDuel has Texas as a 44.5-point favorite, with the over/under set at 52.5 The money line is not yet available.

The Texas defense has had its best performance since 1983, when it also only allowed 19 points in the first three games, compared to its 44 in 2023 and 58 in Steve Sarkisian's first year with the program.

Sep 3, 2022; Austin, Texas, USA; Texas Longhorns defensive lineman Moro Ojomo (98) rushes Louisiana Monroe Warhawks quarterback Chandler Rogers (6) in the second half at Darrell K Royal-Texas Memorial Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Scott Wachter-Imagn Images | Scott Wachter-Imagn Images

The last time the two programs met, in the opener of the 2022 season, the Texas defense allowed 10 points in and scored 53. Since then, ULM has also improved. The Warhawks come into Austin with a 2-0 record, already equaling the number of wins they had the entirety of last season.

"I think coach (Bryant) Vince has done a terrific job (at ULM)," Sarkisian said. "These guys were 2-10 a year ago, he took over, they're 2-0 right now. They believe in hard, nosed tough football. They're going to run the ball, they're going to utilize the play-action pass to take their shots at you. They play good defense and they're playing sound-good football with a lot of new faces and transfers. So we've got to prepare accordingly to put our best foot forward."

Despite the improvements, Louisiana-Monroe is still very much overmatched by the No. 1 team in the country.

The programs will face each other on Saturday at 7 p.m. at DKR.