Texas quarterback Arch Manning tossed three touchdowns and ran for two more as the eighth-ranked Longhorns stomped winless Sam Houston, 55-0, in Austin on Saturday. But for all the redshirt sophomore’s highlights, it was his distasteful end-zone celebration that drew the biggest reaction from college football fans.
After spinning out of the grasp of Sam Houston’s Antavious Fish on a first-quarter touchdown run, the 21-year-old nephew of Peyton and Eli Manning punctuated the score by flexing over the Bearkats linebacker, who was still trying to return to his feet.
Both teams quickly rushed in as officials desperately worked to keep the peace. And even after the two teams were separated, one ref appeared to have a word with Arch as he returned to the Longhorns sideline.
But despite rules against unsportsmanlike conduct, Arch went unpenalized, much to the irritation of college football fans.
‘If his name wasn’t Arch Manning he’d have been flagged for unsportsmanlike conduct,’ one fan complained on X.
Many more fans took the opportunity to criticize Arch for flexing against a winless school from Division I’s bottom half, the Football Championship Subdivision (FCS), after failing to impress against defending-champion Ohio State in a Week 1 loss.
Arch Manning did not get a penalty for unsportsmanlike conduct after taunting a rival
After spinning out of the grasp of Sam Houston’s Antavious Fish on a first-quarter touchdown run, Arch Manning punctuated the score by flexing over the Bearkats linebacker
‘Too bad he could not flex on Ohio State like that,’ joked one fan.
‘Certainly NOT the flex he thinks it is,’ another added.
One particularly sarcastic post read: ‘Oh, well in that case – GIVE HIM THE HEISMAN ALREADY.’
Meanwhile, several other reactions included the word ‘cringe.’
Sam Houston received a reported $1.5 million for playing Texas in what’s known within college football as a ‘buy game.’
Often mismatches that only serve to fatten larger programs’ records, buy games are a controversial part of college football that the Longhorns have certainly embraced in 2025.
After opening against the Buckeyes in Columbus, Manning & Co. have enjoyed three straight buy games to improve to 3-1 while outscoring their underdog opponents 120-17.
The Longhorns now enjoy a bye week (rather than a buy game) before facing struggling Florida on October 4 and renewing the Red River Rivalry with Oklahoma on October 11.
