Texas’ Arch Manning is booted out but will be limited in the spring

Texas quarterback Arch Manning is out of his defensive boot after minor foot surgery in January but will still be limited this spring, “especially early,” coach Steve Sarkisian told ESPN on Thursday.

“He had a lingering thing that he’s been dealing with for a couple of years that we just wanted to clear up,” Sarkeesian said. “It wasn’t a serious problem at all. It takes time. You do a procedure on one leg, we’ll be careful to make sure he’s 100% healthy before we go.”

Manning passed for 3,163 yards and 26 touchdowns and ran for 10 touchdowns last season, his first as the Longhorns’ full-time starter. Sarkeesian said that in the second half of the season, “nobody played better” than Manning, a redshirt sophomore who decided to return to school instead of entering the NFL draft.

“Having a year under his belt and us being a team struggling offensively in the first half of the season, and him finally going through growing pains, that was a good thing,” Sarkeesian said. “I think he’s gained a lot of confidence in the second half of the season, and I think we’ve learned about him, he’s learned his style of play, and he’s come back with a really good mentality. This is his team. … Ultimately, obviously, he wants to win a championship. The rest of the things will fall into place, but that’s his mentality. Every team plays to the limit, he shows.”

Texas, which finished 10-3 last season and missed the College Football Playoff, faces high expectations again this year. The Longhorns defeated Michigan in the Cheese-It Citrus Bowl in a game that included Manning’s 60-yard game-clinching touchdown run. Sarkeesian said Manning’s slow return this spring will give his younger quarterbacks, including KJ Lacy, Dia Bell and MJ Morris, a chance to be “ready to play.”

“He’ll get the job done, but I’m not worried about that,” Sarkeesian said of Manning, “especially now, more than ever, in the summer we get more time with the players.”