Remember the shock of Aaron Rodgers going down just four snaps into his Jets debut? Texas fans nearly experienced their own nightmare Saturday as Arch Manning slipped during a foggy, smoke-filled entrance before the Texas State opener. Chaos briefly took over, but the Longhorns quarterback thankfully walked away unscathed.

Barstool Longhorns uploaded the video on their X handle with a caption that read, “An attempt was made on Arch Manning’s season before yesterday’s game. They cannot stop the inevitable.”

But what exactly happened? Amid a dense curtain of smoke, Manning and his teammates were making their way out to the stadium when the quarterback suddenly stumbled, crashing face-first onto the turf before quickly regaining his footing.

While social media appears to be blaming a nearby fan for bringing Manning down, a closer look suggests that the spectator was actually trying to help or alert him, as the QB tripped over equipment and a cameraman that had been obscured from his view. While the fall looked dramatic, the QB appeared to suffer no injuries, as his performance certainly rocked the stadium.

Arch Manning passed for 305 yards and four touchdowns in his first game of the season, helping the Longhorns roll past Texas State with a dominant 59-7 victory. What should further motivate the Longhorns is the fact that Cam Coleman caught two of those touchdown passes, while Ryan Wingo added another.

To be precise, Manning showed great chemistry with his receiving corps, connecting with Wingo seven times on eight targets, while Coleman made three catches on four opportunities. Emmett Mosley added three receptions on seven targets, with four of Manning’s seven incompletions coming on passes intended for him.

“I liked how we got a lot of guys involved. We have a lot of playmakers who can do everything,” said Manning, who exited the game in the third quarter with Texas leading 42-7.

Manning overcame an interception to complete 74 percent of his passes while posting an impressive passer rating of 210.4. While Manning and Co. certainly performed well in their first game of the season, showcasing their talent, there were also instances when the Longhorns looked a bit off.

Texas and Arch Manning still have some rough edges to fix

Saturday’s blowout win looked comfortable, but Texas was far from flawless. Manning ended a promising first-half drive with an ill-advised throw into triple coverage, while the ground game cooled dramatically after Hollywood Smothers’ 45-yard opening burst.

The Longhorns managed just 111 rushing yards the rest of the way, as the offensive line struggled to generate a push against the undersized Bobcats.

“The run game, we gotta look at and find ways to make it cleaner,” Texas coach Steve Sarkisian said. “I knew we’d have some growing pains today, which we did. Now we have to fix those going into next week. “

While some poor gameplay does not necessarily indicate that the team is in a bad position, the margin for error will certainly shrink against tougher opponents such as Ohio State, who are bringing a much stronger team than last year.

That said, Longhorns running back Derrek Cooper also suffered an ankle injury in the first half and will require further evaluation before his availability is determined. The incident occurred in the second quarter when he sustained the injury during a one-yard run.

Following the play, he was taken to the locker room with trainers before returning to the sideline wearing a walking boot on his right foot.

“We’ll monitor that thing and see what that looks like moving forward,” Sarkisian said.

With a one-game lead, the Longhorns will next face the Ohio State Buckeyes on September 12 at Darrell K Royal–Texas Memorial Stadium. Playing at home could give the team an advantage, but will they be able to capitalize on it? Only time will tell.