The Texas Longhorns entered the 2025 campaign with what we now know to be an unfair amount of hype surrounding young quarterback Arch Manning, who was billed by the media as the best thing since sliced bread, even though he’d never served as a starter for a full season at the collegiate level.
Manning opened the season as the odds-on Heisman trophy favorite, and was touted by ESPN’s Paul Finebaum as “the best college football quarterback we have seen since Tim Tebow entered the scene in 2006.”
Draft expert Mel Kiper pegged him as the top quarterback in the 2026 draft class, even though Manning never indicated he’d declare early
“We put him at No. 1 because we have to. It’s Arch Manning. 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,” Kiper said.
However, things didn’t pan out the way the media expected, and Arch had an extremely up-and-down season, and the Longhorns missed the College Football Playoff. He has since decided to return for his senior season, but after a year in which many fans and pundits wondered if Longhorns head coach Steve Sarkisian would be better off benching him, it’s not all that crazy to wonder if Manning would be better off entering the transfer portal for a fresh start.
However, previous comments from his uncle, legendary NFL quarterback Peyton Manning, confirm that Texas is the only school and that Sark is the coach Arch wants to play for.
“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. I’m glad he’s staying there,” Peyton said.
With it being clear that Arch is staying put for his senior campaign, it’ll be interesting to see if he can put together the sort of season fans were expecting this year now that he knows what will be required of him in a season of play in the SEC.
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.