Arch Manning totals 4 touchdowns as No. 13 Texas beats No. 18 Michigan in Citrus Bowl

NCAAF College Football News, Photos, Stats, Scores, Schedule & Videos...

Icon Sportswire via Getty Images

Get ready for another offseason of Arch Manning Heisman discussion.

Manning was responsible for two fourth-quarter touchdowns as Michigan QB Bryce Underwood threw two fourth-quarter interceptions in No. 13 Texas’ 41-27 Citrus Bowl win over the No. 18 Wolverines.

Texas put the game away with just over five minutes to go. Ty’Anthony Smith intercepted Underwood and returned the ball to the Michigan 45-yard line. After a penalty put Texas back to its own 40, Manning rushed 60 yards for a TD on the Longhorns’ first offensive play and pushed the lead to 11.

It was not the first time Manning’s legs were vital for Texas’ offense in the fourth quarter. Underwood’s 5-yard TD put the Wolverines up 27-24 with 10:56 to go, but Texas responded with a nine-play, 75-yard drive that ended with a 30-yard TD pass from Manning to Kaliq Lockett.

Four plays before the TD pass, Manning ran for 15 yards on fourth down. That play was preceded by an 8-yard run on third down.

Manning finished the game with 155 rushing yards and two rushing scores on just nine carries. He was also 21-of-34 passing for 221 yards and two touchdowns.

After Manning’s second rushing TD, Michigan had the chance to stay within striking distance. But Underwood was picked off by Smith on the second play of Michigan’s following drive. Any hope of a comeback was over.

Underwood showed a lot of promise during the first half as new Michigan coach Kyle Whittingham watched from a suite. But he threw three interceptions within four drives in the second half as his, and Michigan’s, day unraveled.

Will Manning be the Heisman favorite again?

Texas played Wednesday’s game without leading rusher Quintrevion Wisner, second-leading receiver DeAndre Moore Jr. and star defenders Anthony Hill and Michael Taaffe among others. Their absences didn’t matter, as Manning had one of his best games of the season.

The nephew of Peyton and Eli entered the 2025 season as the Heisman favorite despite playing a limited role in Texas’ 2024 season. During that season he only started because of Quinn Ewers’ oblique injury and even said before this season that he hadn’t done enough on the field to be considered the Heisman favorite.

It’s fair to say that 2025 was uneven, too. Manning threw for 170 yards and a TD and an interception in Texas’ Week 1 loss to Ohio State. Manning had five picks over Texas’ first five games as the Longhorns were 3-2 following a loss to Florida.

He was much, much better over the second half of the season. Manning had 12 TD passes and two interceptions over Texas’ final six regular-season games while also rushing for three scores in that span.

Texas won six of its last seven games, though a 35-10 loss to Georgia on Nov. 15 ultimately ended any chance of making the College Football Playoff.

With Manning back in the fold for 2026, Texas is going to be a national title favorite too. But there will be significant changes in Austin. Coach Steve Sarkisian has already made a change at defensive coordinator, with former Florida and South Carolina coach Will Muschamp lined up for 2026. And the Longhorns will also likely be active in the transfer portal. Texas struggled running the ball for a second straight season and the offensive line had stretches of rough play, especially early.

Michigan heads into 2026 with a new coach

Whittingham was introduced as the Wolverines’ new coach on Saturday after he was hired to replace Sherrone Moore. The longtime Utah coach is the team’s third coach in four seasons after Jim Harbaugh’s departure to the Los Angeles Chargers following the 2023 national title campaign and Moore’s short tenure.

The former UM offensive coordinator was fired with cause in early December after Michigan found evidence of an inappropriate relationship with a staffer. Shortly after his firing, Moore allegedly went to the staffer’s residence and was charged days later with felony home invasion and two misdemeanors.

Whittingham spent 21 years at Utah and was the second longest-tenured coach in college football before he announced he was stepping down at the end of the regular season. His first challenge at Michigan is to immediately retain as many players as he can ahead of the transfer portal opening on Jan. 2 while also building a coaching staff and keeping the Wolverines’ top-15 recruiting class intact.

More at NCAAF College Football News, Photos, Stats, Scores, Schedule & Videos