Bijan Robinson gives Arch Manning advice amid media scrutiny

Five games into the season, criticism for Texas quarterback Arch Manning has reached new heights. This comes fresh off a second loss for the Longhorns on Saturday, dropping one at the hands of the Florida Gators. Manning faced consistent pressure but still did not perform at the highest of levels.

As some pushback on the conversation comes in, so does advice for the first-year starting quarterback. Maybe nobody better on how to deal with the noise than former Texas running back Bijan Robinson. He outlined what the mindset should be for Manning and the entire team heading into the Red River Shootout.

“Continue to stay consistent,” Robinson said via The Rich Eisen Show. “Stay consistent as much as possible. Don’t listen to the media because the media will either steer you in the right direction or it will tarnish you for your career. So, for him, always know that everyone has his back in that building. Coach Sark and the team have his back. Everybody around him has his back. It’s not just him, it’s the whole team. The whole offense needs to come together, especially this week playing against Oklahoma.

“This is going to be a really big game for, not just Texas and the program, but the individual players. These are big games for them. They’ve got to hone in, become player-led and become who they’re going to become this week. So, my advice to them is to just put their head down, stay out of the outside noise, and just go on that field on Saturday and show everybody what they can do.”

There might not be a game in college football on Saturday with more outside noise than Texas-Oklahoma. Ironically, Manning does not even enter as the quarterback with the most spotlight on him. The injury status of John Mateer continues to be the top burning question.

But no matter who is out there as the opposing quarterback, Manning wants to put together an outing worthy of winning the Golden Hat. It’s his first time playing in the rivalry after watching Quinn Ewers do so the past two seasons.

Robinson got a first-hand look at Manning play against Florida. Due to the Atlanta Falcons having a bye week, Robinson watched from the Texas sideline. A similar trip will not take place in Dallas due to the Falcons hosting the Buffalo Bills on Monday Night Football. However, Robinson is still there to be a mentor when needed.