Arch Manning entered last college football season with more hype than any quarterback in the nation, and just about any college football player in recent memory. Despite never serving as a full-time starter at the collegiate level, Manning was billed as the next all-time great.
“We put him at No. 1 because we have to. It’s Arch Manning,” said NFL draft expert Mel Kiper heading into the season. “We saw glimpses last year of the greatness he could provide that Texas offense. Running the football, he’s got great legs. Cooper Manning, his father, was a wide receiver until he got injured. So he’s got speed – something Eli and Peyton didn’t have.”
Paul Finebaum touted Manning as “the best college football quarterback we have seen since Tim Tebow entered the scene in 2006.”
Unfortunately for Mannig and the Texas Longhorns, once the season kicked off, things didn’t quite pan out the way they were expected to. Manning struggled, especially in the early part of the season against the other most talented teams in the nation, and the Longhorns missed the College Football Playoff after losing three games in the regular season.
Manning finished the season strong, and Texas responded by allegedly “forcing out” his roommate and close friend Parker Livingstone, who joined the Oklahoma Sooners.
With all the extra noise and expectations surrounding the program, many wondered whether it might not be in Manning’s best interest to enter the transfer portal. Instead, Manning is taking a paycut to help the Longhorns build a contender around him.
Arch’s uncle, legendary NFL quarterback Peyton Manning, previously revealed that Manning is staying at Texas despite everything happening around him for a simple reason: he wants to play for head coach Steve Sarkisian.
“He went to Texas because he wanted to play at Texas. He wanted to go to college and play for (Steve) Sarkisian… most of the right reasons you should choose a college,” Uncle Peyton said, and his reaction to that decision is a happy one.
“I’m glad he’s staying there.”
Arch is showing a loyalty to the Longhorns program that is becoming increasingly rare in the current landscape of collegiate spots. It’ll be interesting to see how it pans out for the budding star.
About Qwame Skinner
Qwame Skinner has loved both writing and sports his entire life. In addition to his sports coverage at Comeback Media, Qwame writes novels, and his debut; The First Casualty, an adult fantasy, is out now.