Arch Manning passed for 258 yards and two touchdowns in his first collegiate start and Jaydon Blue scored four times as No. 1 Texas rolled to a 51-3 win over visiting Louisiana-Monroe on Saturday evening in Austin, Texas.
With star quarterback Quinn Ewers on the shelf with a strained oblique, Manning was workmanlike as he played into the fourth quarter, completing 15 of his 29 passes while uncorking two interceptions — both on tipped balls.
Blue ran for 124 yards and three scores on 25 carries and caught a pass for a score for the Longhorns (4-0), who were playing their first game as the nation’s top ranked team since 2008. In their final tune-up for Southeastern Conference play, the Longhorns outgained the Warhawks 497-111.
General Booty threw for 42 yards to pace Louisiana-Monroe (2-1), which had no play longer than 23 yards.
Manning uncorked his first collegiate interception on Texas’ opening drive but made amends on the second possession, hitting Isaiah Bond for a 56-yard bomb to set the table for Blue’s 1-yard TD plunge with 7:11 to play in the opening quarter.
After an Anthony Hill interception and return allowed Texas to set up shop at the ULM 13, Manning rolled right and found Blue in the end zone for a 3-yard touchdown pass and a 14-0 lead at the 5:28 mark of the first quarter. A Manning-to-Ryan Wingo 17-yard TD pass with 1:34 left in the quarter expanded the lead to 21-0.
Blue’s 2-yard TD run with 8:15 to play in the second quarter capped an eight-play, 87-yard march and pushed Texas’s advantage to 28-0.
Max Larson’s 34-yard field goal with 1:46 to play in the half got the Warhawks on the scoreboard.
Blue carried five times on the Longhorns’ opening possession of the third quarter before Jarrick Gibson finished off the 66-yard march with a 2-yard TD run. The Longhorns’ defense got in on the scoring action when Liona Lefau tackled ULM’s Ozarrio Smith in the end zone for a safety late in the third quarter.
Blue then capped off his evening with a 1-yard scoring run on the opening play of the fourth quarter, pushing the Texas lead to 44-3. Ryan Nibblet finished the scoring with a 1-yard TD run with 8:18 remaining.
