Texas did what it was supposed to do in Week 1. So did Ohio State. The No. 1 Buckeyes and No. 4 Longhorns spent the opening weekend steamrolling overmatched opponents. Now they get the game that can expose something. Urban Meyer thinks the biggest question for Texas is not Arch Manning. It is whether Steve Sarkisian can give his QB enough help.

“Here’s the issue I have… Last year, everybody pointed their finger at Arch Manning and how he didn’t play well,” Urban Meyer told Colin Cowherd via CFB on FOX. “Well, guess what? The offensive explosiveness was shockingly not there. The receivers, the running backs, I watched the tape, and I’m like Tom Brady couldn’t complete the ball because guys were not open.”

Texas, in his view, simply did not create enough offensive explosiveness. The Longhorns already know what happens when the offense stalls against Ohio State. Arch Manning completed 17 of 30 passes for 170 yards with an interception in last year’s 14-7 loss in Columbus. His team managed only seven points, and his best production came too late to change the game. 

Last year in Columbus, the problem went deeper than bad routes. Ohio State’s front line repeatedly squeezed the pocket, leaving Manning with almost no time to go through his reads. Texas spent the offseason retooling the offensive line alongside the skill positions, bringing in veteran portal help up front to ensure the backfield actually has time to let deeper patterns develop against top-tier pass rushers.

This season, Steve Sarkisian made some changes, as Urban Meyer noted. Texas attacked the transfer portal for more firepower. One of their biggest weapons is Auburn WR Cam Coleman, who immediately turned heads. Against Texas State, he caught three passes for 70 yards and two touchdowns. Then there’s North Carolina RB transfer Hollywood Smothers, who finished with 98 yards from scrimmage and a touchdown, while Arizona State transfer Raleek Brown scored twice.

Returning WR Ryan Wingo also gives Arch Manning another weapon after breaking out for 121 receiving yards and a touchdown in the opener. The QB also threw for 305 yards and four touchdowns in Texas’ 59-7 win over Texas State. 

“If the offensive skill performs, I think it’s a walk-off,” Meyer stated. “Either team can win. If the offensive skill does not perform, Texas can’t win this game.”

Meanwhile, for Ohio State, Julian Sayin enters the rematch with his own strong opening statement. He overwhelmed Ball State by completing 21 of 25 passes for 320 yards and three touchdowns as the Buckeyes ended the game 56-3.

The Week 2 setting may be just as important. Texas has won 21 of its last 22 games in Austin, and Urban Meyer believes the crowd can be worth roughly five to seven points in a game this tight. He called the matchup essentially a “coin toss,” but still landed on Ohio State after their last two wins against the Longhorns. 

“I’m going to pick the Buckeyes, but I think it’s going to be a walk-off win for whoever wins,” he said on The Triple Option.

Still, Urban Meyer’s main point was not really about picking Ohio State. It was about giving Texas a chance. If Coleman, Wingo, Smothers, and the rest of the skill group can consistently create separation, Arch Manning has enough talent to create pressure for the Buckeyes. If those players disappear, he does not see a path.

Arch Manning knows what is waiting for him. He called last year’s loss a bad memory but sounded far less burdened by it now.

“I feel like I’m a year better,” he said this week. “Any time you go throughout a season, get reps, you gain experience. Then a whole offseason to get better and a game last week. I feel like I’m a year better.”

That is the theory Texas is betting on as high anticipation builds ahead of Saturday’s Darrell K Royal-Texas Memorial Stadium showdown. The game will show whether Arch Manning actually got better or whether the players around him finally did.