Texas quarterback Arch Manning had maybe his best day as a starter on Saturday in the Longhorns’ 55-0 win over the Sam Houston Bearkats at DKR Memorial Stadium in Austin, Texas.

Manning threw for 309 yards and three touchdowns as No. 8 Texas had no problems getting past the 0-4 Bearkats. He went 18-of-21 and also ran for two scores before leaving the game with a 45-0 lead.

“It felt good,” Manning said. “I wish I could have done that the last (three) weeks. But I’m glad we did it tonight … Got the ball in my guys’ hands and let them go to work.”

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Everyone on the Texas sideline was happy to see the Manning that they knew was in there.

“He got his swagger back,” Texas senior safety Michael Taaffe said. “Everybody knew that it was in there. What he showed tonight is what we expect.”

After his first touchdown run of the day, he stood over a defender and flexed while staring him down before an official broke up the scene. It was a play that most players would be flagged for a taunting call, but Manning got away with it.

“Probably a little much there. My mom was pretty mad about it,” Manning said. “I think it was some built-up frustration for the past few weeks.”

Entering Saturday’s mathcup, Manning was completing just 55 percent of his throws. At one point against the Sam Houston defense, he connected on 14 straight passes.

“When he plays a little looser and he’s free, that’s the best version of Arch,” Texas coach Steve Sarkisian said. “He got going and started throwing the ball. Started using his legs. You could feel the bounce in his step on the field.”

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The Longhorns’ defense completely shut down the Sam Houston offense, which gained just 17 total yards over its first 15 plays with no first downs.

The Bearkats were clearly overmatched, to no one’s surprise, and they may have been just the type of opponent that Manning needed to get back on track with his confidence. But will that confidence continue as the Longhorns enter the SEC portion of their schedule?

“I’m not really worried about what anyone thinks of the narratives. I’m just trying to play ball, get wins. That’s most important, especially going into SEC play. Right?” he said.

We’ll find out on Oct. 4 as Texas opens SEC play against Florida in Gainesville.

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