AUSTIN, Texas — Texas Longhorns redshirt sophomore quarterback Arch Manning is clipped enough with the media that one reporter felt compelled to ask redshirt senior safety Michael Taaffe, one of Manning’s
best friends on the team, how to get better responses out of the heavily-scrutinized passer.
So it wasn’t a surprise when Manning was cagey about the status and ability of sophomore wide receiver Emmett Mosley, the Stanford transfer who is yet to make his Texas debut after suffering an injury during preseason camp.
“I don’t really know. I don’t really want to say anything about him. He’s a good player, though, so I don’t want to give anything away,” Manning said on Monday.
Texas head coach Steve Sarkisian wasn’t any more forthcoming about injuries during his weekly press conference that day, pointing reporters to the SEC-mandated injury report that will come out on Wednesday evening. But Mosley does seem to be trending in a positive direction after multiple reports emerged last Friday that Mosley was a participant in Thursday’s practice.
When the 6’2, 210-pounder is available, he’s expected to bolster a Texas wide receiving corps that hasn’t met expectations yet this season, in part due to injuries like Mosley’s and junior wide receiver DeAndre Moore Jr. missing a game and a half due to a concussion.
Manning has also struggled with his accuracy due to mechanical breakdowns and an general inability to connect with sophomore wide receiver Ryan Wingo, although the hope is that Wingo’s four catches for 93 yards and two touchdowns against Sam Houston represented a breakthrough in chemistry between quarterback and wide receiver.
As a true freshman at Stanford, Mosley notched 48 receptions for 525 receiving yards (10.9 yards per reception), leading the Cardinal with six touchdown catches.
Redshirt frehsman wide receiver Parker Livingstone is excited about Mosley’s return because it takes pressure off of the current contributors.
“It’s gonna be awesome. Obviously there’s gonna be more rotation-wise, so everyone catches their breath, not as tired, but he’s a great blocker, too. He’s a great receiver, great separation. So I’m excited to have him back. It’s gonna be fun,” Livingstone said.
The blocking is particularly key for Texas — this group of wide receivers is bigger physically than the groups through the first four years of the Sarkisian era, producing optimism from Sarkisian and wide receivers coach Chris Jackson that the Longhorns would be more dominant on the edge in the running game and the wide receiver screen game.
So far, Texas hasn’t been effective in those areas beyond Moore, who has been above average when healthy.
That should change when Mosley returns if Taaffe’s first experience going against the Stanford transfer in practice is any indication.
“He’s a stud. I tried to test him the first day of spring ball when we had pads on and he gained my respect the second that I tried to test him on a crack block. So he’s a physical blocker, really good route runner. It seems like he’s a culture guy. He wants to win,” Taaffe said.
