Texas insider teases possible Arch Manning debut for Longhorns

Two weeks ago, the Texas Longhorns lost starting quarterback Quinn Ewers to a grade 2 AC joint sprain against the Houston Cougars when lowering his right shoulder before getting tackled on a scramble. With that, the team leaned upon backup Maalik Murphy to fill in for as long as Ewers needed to get healthy. That left highly-touted recruit Arch Manning standing on the sidelines.

This past weekend, Texas narrowly beat the No. 23 Kansas State Wildcats, beating them 33-30 in overtime. Murphy had a rough game, having two interceptions, one of which occurred in the fourth quarter that allowed the Wildcats to capitalize with a touchdown to cut their deficit to 27-21.

Entering Week 11, there is discussion about whether Ewers will be cleared to play against the TCU Horned Frogs. While speaking with On3 Sports' Andy Staples, Bobby Burton of InsideTexas.com said he would not be surprised if head coach Steve Sarkisian looks towards Manning and throws him in the game if Ewers isn't cleared to play.

Texas insider wouldn't be shocked if Steve Sarkisian turns to Arch Manning vs. TCU

"I would not be surprised if someone like Arch Manning, if Quinn Ewers can't go, if Steve Sarkisian doesn't look at Arch Manning at some point during that game against TCU," said Burton. "Because Maalik Murphy had two interceptions on Saturday, probably should have had four. I mean, they were in and out of K-State defenders' hands two other times. It's a precarious situation for Texas right now."

Murphy threw for 248 yards, one touchdown, and two interceptions while completing 19-of-37 pass attempts against Kansas State. According to Pro Football Focus, Murphy had a clean pocket on 31 dropbacks and threw for 237 yards, one touchdown, and one interception while completing 16-of-30 pass attempts. When under pressure on seven dropbacks, Murphy completed three of seven throws for 11 yards and an interception.

On Monday, Sarkisian revealed that Ewers was throwing a football, and is now considered day-to-day instead of week-to-week.

The Longhorns suffered their scare against Kansas State this past week and will have to win out if they want a shot at the College Football Playoff. For them, they saw the Oklahoma Sooners, the team that handed them their only defeat this season, lose two straight games in as many weeks and are undoubtedly tumbling down the College Football Playoffs rankings this Tuesday. The only team with an identical win-loss record in conference play is the Oklahoma State Cowboys, who are 5-1.

We should get a clearer picture of who will start the game against the Horned Frogs on Saturday. If Ewers can't go, will there actually be a chance that Manning gets his first official snaps at the collegiate level? We'll have to wait and see during the game.