← On Texas Football
On Texas Football
Aaron Murray: Arch Manning FINALLY Has Help | Texas Football | Steve Sarkisian
00:11:09
Former Georgia quarterback Aaron Murray breaks down Arch Manning’s development as he prepares for his second season leading the Texas offense. Murray explains why the jump from Year 1 to Year 2 can be so significant for a starting quarterback, from...
Loading summary
Transcript38 lines
- [00:00]
A
Tampa native. Yeah. ESPN analyst Aaron Murray. Really good quarterback as well at Tampa, Flint, Georgia. We're going to talk today about Arch Manning. Yeah, SEC quarterback. Some of the guys may be on Texas schedule, Year two starting at Texas and in the sec. What did you see from him in year one? Kind of. What are you looking for in year two?
- [00:21]
B
Yeah, I mean, I was pretty vocal last year, preseason that, that we are way too premature with that, like, oh, Heisman. Oh, number one pick, the NFL draft. And you know, to be honest, like going back and watching tape of him from the previous year, especially, you know, like, say the game against Georgia. I know Georgia's defense is illegal and whatnot, but I was like, I just didn't see it just yet. Yeah, yeah, I was like, I was like, let me just get a few games to digest. And obviously it was rocky, you know, but I remember, you know, this was game three or four of the season. I, I, you know, watching, I mean, every, every week I was watching the tape and, you know, I came, I was like, arch is not playing great, but he's the third issue on this football team when it comes to offense. The offense line was atrocious and then I thought the receivers underperformed for the majority of the season as well. So, you know, it's hard to play the quarterback position already in this league. It's hard to play it when the guys around you are not helping you. And I don't think that there's a lot of support for Arch. A year ago, so he got better, he gained more confidence. I started obviously making plays with his legs to where you end the year off with a lot of confidence. And I think obviously the offensive, the receivers are going to improve. Tim Pullman's absolute freak. We all know that. But if the offensive line can make the improvements from last year to this year. I know it's been said a lot this week, but this could be one of the best offenses in the country. Obviously one of the best offenses in this league. I do think Arch has a lot of great tools. I think he's a great athlete. He can make all the throws you want. I'm maybe not as high as the others when it comes to like, oh, bonafide number one, picking that top draft. I think he has first round talent. I'm not going to say he's a top 10 talent just yet, but he's a really good quarterback that heading into your second season, you expect him to really take some steps in the right direction.
- [01:51]
A
What, so looking back on your career, what Was that difference between first and second year as a starter.
- [01:58]
B
It's just, to me, it's just confidence, you know, yes, you can work on some things, you know, fundamental wise. I think for a coaching staff, too, they go back and they, they watch the tape, they evaluate every position, especially the quarterback spot, and say, okay, these are the plays we called. This is what he execute. We can either tell him, hey, these are areas we want you to work on to, to expand the playbook, or we double down. Hey, Arch is really good at this, this, this, and this and this. Let's kind of restructure our playbook to really emphasize those plays going forward. So I think it's a coaching staff learning him, and I think it's him understanding too. These are areas that I need to work on. And then, you know, just like anything in life, the more you do it, the more, the more, you know, expertise you gain in that area, the more confidence you get. So, you know, my biggest jump for me was my freshman year to my sophomore year. So I expect him, you know, a guy like Gunner at Georgia and any guy going from year one to year two to really elevate their game. And like I said, it helps that you have probably the best athlete, you know, maybe one of the best receivers in the country, Cam Coleman, now the third two as well.
- [02:58]
A
Breaking news. Aaron Murray's high on Cam Coleman, like everybody else, but you've watched, you've studied Cam. Oh, what is it you like about them?
- [03:04]
B
Well, he reminds me of guy like AJ Green that used to throw.
- [03:07]
A
Yeah. Hell yeah.
- [03:07]
B
You know, when you, when you have, when you have an X receiver, you know that without those physical gifts, you know that you can match up one on one. You know, it gives the quarterback a lot of indicators. You know, what we would do with AJ A lot of times was, you know, AJ would be our Z. He'd be to the strength in two by two. But then when we get to three by one formations, AJ Would be our extraceiver. So AJ would get matched up backside and it would tell me, hey, you know, a safe, a defense would have to declare, do I want to put a safety over top to double him?
- [03:35]
A
Yeah.
- [03:36]
B
Which, you know, allowed you to run the football or get some matchups one on one this slot, or if we didn't want the team just to run the football with the light box, we put a safety down and then you can just run whatever you want. You know, I would look over to AJ Be like, all right, outside leverage is sort of slant. He's playing Offense run a hitch. Oh, he's playing offense. Runner, Sluggo. He wants to man you up face to face. Let's go. Let's take a shot. So it just opens up so much more. The more that him and Cam work together, they're going to be able just to play off each other and really take advantage of whatever the defense wants to present.
- [04:06]
A
Yeah. So last thing on arcs, because I do want to ask you about some, your thoughts on some quarterbacks in the sec Texas play. One of the things I've said is in 10, 12, however many years, when Arch looks back, I think the early season struggles last year are going to end up being what defines him as a player because that was not just adversity. That was adversity with the weight of the world on your shoulders. And the UTEP game was scary when you kind of had the yips.
- [04:33]
B
Yes.
- [04:34]
A
And you're like, we all play golf.
- [04:36]
B
Question yourself a little bit.
- [04:38]
A
When you're sitting alone on your couch because you want alone time, there's a lot of things in your head. How much do you think that's gonna kind of build and define him moving forward?
- [04:49]
B
I love you said the Yips. I, I think he's worked through them, but he also has the tr. I, I trust Tsarkesian and I know there's been some heat up on Steve about, you know, oh, he needs to give up the play calling duties. Caesar Arkesian is one of the best play callers, offensive minds in this game. You don't take that away from him. But you also have to understand that if, if Steve Arkesian sees enough in Arch Manning, he's not going to risk his career at Texas just to put a Manning in a quarterback. Now Arch Manning is playing there because one of the best offensive minds in college football believes that Arch Manning is good enough to win a national championship at the University of Texas. So like, you have to trust those that have a higher football education and iq. And like I said, Steve Carcassian is one of those guys that if he says it and he puts a guy out there, you got to trust what he's doing. So I think those two guys obviously work really well together and I think that chemistry is only going to grow in the second season.
- [05:41]
A
So I'm going to ask you about a couple, three quarterbacks that Texas has on their schedule. Let's start with Trinidad Chamble. Yeah, I just, I just call it Clutch Gene.
- [05:49]
B
Yeah, yeah, he does.
- [05:50]
A
Like, what is it you see from Trinidad? And I'm asking you this as a guy who played it without Lane Kipen, without Charlie Weiss Jr. He's going through a little bit of adjustment and change. What do you like about Chambers and what's kind of on his plate this year with that change?
- [06:03]
B
Well, I love everything about Chambers. You go back, I put out a quarterback breakdown on my YouTube channel. This was, I think, week two or week three. When he played, I was like, there's nothing that you don't like about this kid's game. He's got touch. He can layer the football, he can push the ball vertically down the field. He's obviously got elite pocket awareness and mobility and can beat you with his legs. He can play within the RPO game. So, you know, if he was 6 2, we'd be talking about that. He probably would have been number one, picking another drop. It's just, he's just a little small for that next level. But anything else, he's, he's tremendous. He's, he's, he is one of the most gifted quarterbacks in college football. But yes, it will be an adjustment. He can play within, in any, any system. I just talked about Cesar Keysian being, you know, a top five play caller. I think Lane Kiffin is the best offensive line in college football. We see it week in and week out. His ability to scheme up guys wide open to put the quarterback in an advantageous situation where guys are open or match up or whatever it may be to make his job easier. So, yes, Trinidad can play within any system because of all his tools, but not having the wide open guys or the matchup creativity that Lane and Charlie Weiss Jr. Can produce, that's going to hurt his production, but like I said, does not take away from how good a quarterback he is.
- [07:19]
A
So a hot button topic for Texas fans is John Mattier.
- [07:23]
B
Yep.
- [07:23]
A
Okay. You know how rivalry games go. Florida fans hate your guts, right? Oh, yeah, that's just part of it. So, John Matier, what have you seen from Mattier and what are the big steps he needs to take? Because I kind of see the gunslinger of take some chances, some risks.
- [07:38]
B
He needs to go back to that.
- [07:39]
A
Venable said running the football is the biggest thing that can help him talk about that because. Oh, but he couldn't run it last year.
- [07:45]
B
No, I mean, they, they only run it when he was healthy and was. When he was running the football. That was it. So I still think at the end of the day they need to take some pressure off him. Like I. You shouldn't have to ask your quarterback to go win the game for you. Running into football. So. Yes. Does, does. Does running the football help him feel part of the game and part of his identity? 100%. But like, I don't want him to run the football 15 times per game.
- [08:07]
A
Yeah.
- [08:07]
B
Will there be a game where he has to run it 15 times? Yes. But if you're going to ask John Mattier to run the football 15 times a game for a 12 game season and then expect him to go and do that in the playoffs, I know he's gotten big and bulked up this offseason even more than he already was. I just don't think that's sustainable for an all star. Like, it's just not, not what you say, healthy. But when it comes to what does he need to get back to? He just needs to get back to that gunslinger mentality. Does it come with inherent risks of, you know, turnovers? 100. But that's what he's playing his best. And that's when I think he's a playmaker going out there playing more freely. So I, I think when you get back to the injury, there was the, the. My hands hurt. Got to be a little more careful. But also, hey, John, we got an elite defense. Just don't lose us the game. You can never tell a quarterback to play like that.
- [08:52]
A
Right.
- [08:52]
B
You can't do. That's the hard thing you can't do.
- [08:54]
A
Quarterback's got to come to that almost.
- [08:56]
B
The quarterback needs to play free.
- [08:57]
A
Yeah.
- [08:58]
B
Cannot tell a quarterback of that skill set and that mentality to reign it in. I remember I was at an event, this is three or four years ago, and you know, Ronde Barber, one of my favorite players for the Bucs, you know, cornerback, was talking about one of his favorite plays, a pick six against Matt Ryan, who was in the Mayor as well. He was speaking. Matt Ryan came up and said, you know what, I remember that play. It sucked. But if you're a quarterback afraid of making mistakes, you'll never be great. You cannot be. Mistakes are part of the game. Every position, and obviously the quarterback position gets more magnified than any other position because we touch the ball every play. But you can't be afraid to make mistakes. And I think for him there was a sense of afraid to make mistakes. The back half find the middle ground and I think he's going to have a great season.
- [09:38]
A
Last two questions and thanks for the time, Aaron. I really appreciate it. Texas goes to Tennessee this year. They play at Knoxville. Never played there before. What's in front of Texas in Knoxville? It's an underrated place to play. I've been to one game there.
- [09:50]
B
Oh, I crabs a place and when Tennessee's against it, regardless if they're good or not, but especially when they're a good football team. It's the hardest place, I think in college football play. You know, I've never played in the Big house. I haven't played Ohio State. I get that. But when, when Neyland, I remember driving up my first time. It's. It is one of the most intimidating stadiums to look at and when it's a great game, it's a competitive game. As a quarterback, it's impossible to communicate verbally. So it really challenges you with your preparation leading into the game of of the non verbal cues and communication, the play calling to be on your p's and Q's. It's one of the great places in this conference to play in. So for Texas fans making the trip, it's going to be a great experience.
- [10:31]
A
Last question. We just got to ask this one. No Georgia people around. If you want to pick Texas, who's your pick to win the SEC this year?
- [10:37]
B
It's Georgia. Georgia was very young last year. They, they got significantly better. It's the same narrative I said when Georgia couldn't beat Alabama. Until you can beat Alabama, Alabama is the class of the sec. Until Texas can beat Georgia, Georgia is the class of the SEC and this could be the year. Like I said, are they talented enough to do it? 100 Cesar Keysian a good enough coach to do it 100%. But they got to do it. They got to break through. Just like Kirby had to break through Nick Saban C. Sarcasians got to break through Kirby.