Can Steve Sarkisian and Arch Manning save Texas' season? - ESPN

It was supposed to be all victories and Vuori commercials by now for Steve Sarkisian and Arch Manning.

Actually, Manning, if the scouts were to be believed, was never expected to see his fourth season at Texas. He was supposed to be a rookie sensation in the NFL by now.

Instead he's dealing with speculation about sharing playing time with a redshirt freshman or possibly transferring at season's end. Manning's career is beginning to resemble that of Quinn Ewers, the Longhorns' previous No. 1 overall recruit who, while certainly a good player, never reached the expectations surrounding him.

Sarkisian, meanwhile, after consecutive losses to unranked teams, is facing renewed pressure on everything — his playcalling, his roster decisions, his program and maybe his own future.

All of this just as an Ole Miss team that is the Longhorns' polar opposite — led by a once-unheralded Division II transfer at quarterback — arrives in already restless Austin.

The questions are everywhere.

Can Manning be more than just a good, but inconsistent, quarterback with a famous name?

Is Sarkisian really some offensive genius, or is he mostly the beneficiary of a series of extraordinary opportunities — calling plays as an assistant during the dynasty days of USC and Alabama that led to head coaching chances at Washington, USC and now UT?

And, finally, why can't Texas be more than just a program of endless hype and money? Despite all its resources, especially in these free-spending days, it has captured just a single national title since 1970.

The aforementioned promise of coach and program is a big reason Manning chose Texas over the established championship pedigrees of Alabama's Nick Saban and Georgia's Kirby Smart.

It was supposed to be a