As Texas took the field during the Cotton Bowl against Ohio State for Friday’s College Football Playoff semifinal, the ongoing debate among fans about the team’s quarterback continued between junior starter Quinn Ewers and highly-touted freshman Arch Manning.

Ewers struggled to find his rhythm in the game’s opening moments, putting Texas on the back foot in a high-stakes matchup. Ohio State showed the firepower of its offense on its opening drive with a Quinshon Judkins nine-yard rushing touchdown to set the tone early. Ewers was tasked with matching that energy but stumbled out of the gate.

Texas’ first drive ended in a turnover on downs, followed by two consecutive punts, frustrating Longhorn fans hoping for an explosive start. Heading into halftime, the junior quarterback had thrown for just 83 yards and rushed for -18 yards on three carries, often pressured by the Buckeyes relentless defensive front led by five-star senior defensive end JT Tuimoloau.

Texas struggled to convert on third down, with Ewers opening the game 1 of 5 on third-down efficiency. A key moment in the first half came on a third-down play where Ewers targeted receiver Ryan Wingo.

The ESPN commentators quickly called out what appeared to be a blatant missed pass interference call that could have extended the drive. Instead, the incompletion resulted in a punt that saw few repercussions after the Buckeyes returned the ball.

Ewers’ rocky start re-hashed the ongoing debate among the Texas faithful about whether the first-year phenom should take over the game. While Ewers has led Texas to success this season, he was also the starter for the program’s losses to Georgia, including the SEC Championship.

Arch Manning enters the Cotton Bowl

Arch Manning earned Texas a first down during his lone appearance of the first half ( 

Image:

Getty)

“Put Arch Manning in. Quinn Ewers is not it,” said a fan on social media in reaction to a video of his first time getting sacked during the game. Another fan on X wrote: “Quinn Ewers has been atrocious and seems like a deer in headlights. Texas will lose if Arch Manning is not inserted. Steve Sarkisian should have made this decision a long while ago”

Manning spent most of his Longhorns career waiting in the wings after Sarkisian made it known that the team would start Ewers as long as he was healthy. While Ewers was sidelined with an oblique injury early in the regular season, Manning led the team to two victories over UL Monroe and Mississippi State.

While Ewers’ first-half performance was criticized, he made a big-time rush with a minute left in the quarter to avoid a blitz, lowering his pads against his former team to take a big hit as he fought hard for a first down. After falling a yard short, Manning was called into the game and delivered the first down on a controversial eight-yard rush that initially appeared to be a fumble.

Ewers then delivered an 18-yard TD pass to Jaydon Blue to tie the game at seven. OSU quickly responded when Buckeyes QB Will Howard completed a 75-yard pass to TreVeyon Henderson to re-take the lead.