‘Edgy’ Arch Manning is a better leader, but still mistake-prone

AUSTIN — Does Texas Longhorns head coach Steve Sarkisian want to see senior quarterback Arch Manning make his "edgy" personality more permanent?

"Yeah, love it," Sarkisian responded. "That fires me up."

Similar to Manning's wild vascillation between high-level plays and confounding errors and turn downs , Manning's personality also swings, from quiet and withdrawn to swaggy and fiery as his confidence ebbs and flows.

On Saturday, Texas got the edgy version in a 34-27 victory over Ole Miss in the wake of back-to-back losses to unranked opponents that saw Manning commit late, game-changing turnovers in both games after week-long speculation swirled about the possibility of Sarkisian taking the rare step of benching his starter .

Sarkisian met personally with Manning last Sunday to challenge his highly-touted quarterback. During the week, Manning's edgy personality emerged. Or re-emerged, depending on the perspective .

"He's edgy right now, and honestly, I appreciate that about him," Sarkisian said Thursday. "At some point, he's got to fight back, and the best way for him to fight back is going out and playing really good football with his teammates and enjoy playing football with his teammates, so I'm looking forward to watching him compete Saturday night."

Over recent weeks, Texas has struggled to translate how players practice into how players play , but Manning did at least take the edginess with which he operated during the week into the Ole Miss game, elevated by his first two rushing touchdowns of the season.

The first, a two-yard run at the end of the first quarter, not only gave the Longhorns a seven-point lead, it also provided an indelible image of Manning's celebration synced perfectly to the heightened experience at Darrell K Royal-Texas Memorial Stadium.

A sideline shot captured the type of fire that has defined the best moments of Manning's Texas tenure. In his worst moments, the absence of it has left a tangible void.

Quantifying the points added or lost by the difference in Manning's leadership is impossible, but the result on Saturday compared to the results the previous two weeks affords some data points, at least.

In between the whistles, the Arch Manning Experience hit some all-too-familiar beats while showing some signs of progress.

The combination of Sarkisian calling more routes over the middle, where Manning is hyper efficient, and the Texas quarterback operating with less hesitancy, an issue that contributed to multiple sacks in last week's loss to Florida, helped the Longhorns race out to a 24-3 lead at halftime on 13-of-19 passing for 171 yards, including a beautiful 50-yard touchdown pass to junior wide receiver Ryan Wingo.

The throw to Wingo was the weekly pinnacle for Manning.

Other decisions ended poorly when Manning admittedly didn't see the defenders who intercepted two of his passes, but at least happened with less hesitancy?

The first came on the type of out route to junior wide receiver Emmett Mosley that Manning missed consistently against the Gators. On the second Texas drive, Ole Miss busted its coverage, leaving two defenders on Mosley as junior wide receiver Ryan Wingo came open on a corner route.

The second interception was more confounding when Manning threw into triple coverage trying to target sophomore tight end Emaree Winston deep down the field.

Of Winston's six receptions this season, only one has come more than 10 yards down the field.

Manning's inability to layer a pass to Winston in another instance is reflective of his regular misfires, albeit one made more difficult by having to reset his feet after moving out of the pocket and throwing across the field.

Manning's other turnover, the sack-fumble on the first drive of the third quarter, wasn't primarily his fault because backup left tackle Andre Cojoe got beat badly on a speed rush.

After another game of highs and lows, Manning and the Longhorns broke their losing streak, and the embattled quarterback shared an emotional moment on the field with his family.

Meeting with the media after the game, Manning provided some further insight into why that moment was so important to him.

"Probably because it was a hard Sunday and I went over to their place and damn near bawl cried to them, so just being able to see them after a game, after a win, felt good," Manning said.

Years of hype built up the expectations surrounding the big, speedy quarterback with the famous last name who seemingly had all the attributes to excel at Texas.

Now Manning is reveling in his newfound existence on the opposite end of the spectrum.

"I think I kind of like being disregarded and counted out," Manning said.