Texas Longhorns quarterback Arch Manning found himself in a bit of hot water with his mom after Saturday’s 55-0 win over Sam Houston State. The controversy? A touchdown celebration that included a memorable stare down with Sam Houston State’s linebacker Antavious Fish.
After scoring his first touchdown during the game, Manning was seen uncharacteristically taunting Fish, a move that drew plenty of attention and heat from fans.
One fan wrote, “staring down a player on sam houston as Texas and being a 5 star prospect is ridiculous.” Another commented, “Flexing on Sam Houston State is crazy work.”
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“My mom was pretty mad about that”, the 21-year-old admitted to reporters in a postgame press conference on Saturday night. “A little immature, but I think it’s some built-up frustration from the past few weeks,” he explained.
When asked if the celebration warranted a penalty, he reluctantly said, “Yeah, the ref came up to me. I was so scared. The ref ripped my a–. I apologized to the ref. I didn’t say anything to the guy.”
Texas safety Michael Taaffe chimed in after the game saying, “He got his swagger back. Everybody knew that it was in there. What he showed tonight is what we expect.”
Texas head coach Steve Sarkisian also weighed in on the incident.
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“I always say this about Arch, there’s a lot more personality in there than sometimes everyone gets to see. He’s a little bit at his best when that emotion comes out. There was a lot built up in there from last week that he needed to get out, and the guys feed off that for him—it’s one of his strengths.”
“He’s a very cerebral guy in his approach and in his preparation, but at his core, I think when he plays a little looser, a little bit more free, that’s the best version of Arch,” Sarkisian continued. “That’s when he’s really at his best.”
