Arch Manning rates alarmingly low in key stats among SEC quarterbacks

College football fans are well aware of Texas quarterback Arch Manning's struggles to begin his first season as the full-time Longhorn starter. But let's dive into some icky numbers that tell the full truth about Manning through three games.

Of course, Texas fell on the road at Ohio State in their opener, 14-7, a respectable outcome. Then, they bounced back for consecutive victories over San Jose State and UTEP, though Manning failed to look much better, especially given the competition, than he did in a poor performance against the defending national champions.

So, is he really that bad? Or will Manning find his footing in SEC play? So far, his footing, compared to other SEC quarterbacks, is well below average. Let's look at seven important passing categories from Sports Reference and see how Arch Manning ranks in them among SEC quarterbacks:

Passing Yards: 579 (13th)
Passing TDs: 6 (8th)
Completions: 47 (13th)
Completion %: 55.3% (15th-Last)
Yards Per Attempt: 6.8 (13th)
Pass Efficiency Rating: 128.7 (13th)
Interceptions: 3 (3rd-most)

The paper trail is not going to help calm any qualms about the Texas starter. Seriously, the only category Manning even makes the top half of the SEC, in a good way, is touchdowns, which is arguably the most team-reflective stat on there. Instead, it's unlucky No. 13 where Manning ranks in several important numbers, like raw passing yards, passer efficiency rating and total completions.

The most damning of those figures? Probably the 55.3% completion rate. Manning understandably gets somewhat of a pass in the road showdown against No. 1 Ohio State, but through that game plus two more cupcake-level contests, he shouldn't be DEAD LAST at completing passes in the SEC, especially as the quarterback of this Texas roster with a guy like Steve Sarkisian dialing up the plays.

Arch Manning is no outlier as a highly-touted prospect who didn't set the world on fire the first time he took a college football field. But after a few games, it's fair to wonder if there's any signs of life for him as a productive starter in the SEC, because you can't really point to one strength of his that's shined through in September, and the numbers reflect that.

Yes, we know, nine more games are on the schedule and Manning has a litany of blockbuster matchups where he can flip the narrative in the snap of a finger. The evidence that he will just keeps growing thinner.

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