SECMD25: Bloodlines has Texas QB Manning engaging expectations
Texas quarterback Arch Manningis attempting to keep himself grounded heading into thee 2025 football season. (Bill Lumpkin III)
By BILL LUMPKIN III
ATLANTA – The championship bloodlines are unquestionable.
The “Chosen One’ is set to take his rightful place under center for the Texas Longhorns for the 2025 season.
Yes, it’s Arch Manning time in Austin.
Cue the hype train.
“I try not to pay any attention to any of that,” said Manning. “I don’t really ever look at social media. I’ve got a bet right now with a friend of mine for $25 that I can stay off of all social media for a week. My friends and family really keep me grounded.
“I was playing golf last week and I kind of complemented by own shot and my friends were like, “What the hell is that?’ They all pretty much keep me in place.”
Despite starting only two games in his first two seasons at UT, Manning is the odds-on-favorite to capture the 2025 Heisman Trophy.
The nephew of NFL greats Peyton and Eli Manning and the grandson of Archie Manning, the eyes of Texas and the nation will have its collective eyes on the prodigal son as the Longhorns open the 2025 season on the road against defending national champion Ohio State.
“My grandfather (Archie) is probably my best friend,” Arch said. “We text each other every day. He would come to a lot of my practices in high school. He’s a great role model and he just reminds me to be a good guy and a good teammate. That’s what I try to do.”
Arch broke Uncle Eli’s high school record of 7,268 passing yards and Uncle Peyton’s record of 93 touchdowns. He finished his prep career with 8,539 passing yards and 115 touchdowns against only 19 interceptions in 996 attempts.
Despite all the lofty accolades and being from football royalty, he remains soft spoken and would rather stay away from the spotlight as much as possible.
“I really didn’t want to come to this today,” he said. “I guess it’s been fun. Cameras really aren’t my favorite thing, but then I realized I needed to represent the University of Texas and it’s been a cool thing.”
Arch admits being a Manning and the starting quarterback isn’t always easy to escape the spotlight.
“I don’t know about the famous part because there’s a lot of famous people running around Austin,” he joked. “We got (Matthew) McConaughey running around. So, I’ll probably always be in his shadow as long as he keeps acting.”
The 21-year-old Manning, who was the nation’s No. 1 recruit out of Isidore Newman in New Orleans, completed 2 of 5 passes for 40 yards and rushed three times for seven yards during a redshirt season in 2022.
Mannings’ first career start came a year ago in relief of injured Quinn Evers against Louisiana -Monroe. He completed 15 of 29 passes for 258 yards and a pair of touchdowns in the 51-3 victory.
He also got his first SEC start the following week in a 35-13 rout of Mississippi State, completing 26 of 31 passes for 325 yards and two touchdowns and 33 yards rushing on six carries and a touchdown.
He finished the season playing in 10 games, completing 63 of 95 passes 939 yards and nine touchdowns with two interceptions. He also rushed for 108 yards on 25 carries and four touchdowns.
He saw limited action in the postseason, not attempting a pass in the SEC Championship Game or either of the NCAA Playoff games against Clemson or Ohio State. He did rush a combined five times for 13 yards.
He easily could have packed his bags and left in the days of the free-wheeling transfer portal.
“I never really considered it,” he said. “I love Austin and it being such a cool city and so much to do. Then, there’s a great education and the football side of it. I believe those two years have really been beneficial.
“Now, obviously, they weren’t always fun for me. The competitor in you always wants to play. But looking back, I feel like I’ve grown a lot as a person. Quinn (Ewers) told me how quick everything goes by and I don’t want to take anything for granted and enjoy the moment.”
Texas coach Steve Sarkisian said there’s no doubt in his mind Manning is ready for the job.
“He grew up in this era of seeing high-level football,” Sarkisian said. “He’s watched Super Bowls. He’s watched gold jackets being put on. He’s been recruited at the highest level as the No. 1 player in the country.
“He watched Quinn navigate through the ups and downs of being a starting quarterback at the University of Texas.
“I think the one thing you'll find out about Arch is, one, he's very even keel about him. Two, he's very quick witted. He's got a great sense of humor about himself and he's okay to laugh at himself, and I think that's a great quality to have because, at the end of the day, there's going to be adversity that's going to strike this season, and we all talk about resiliency and grit and all those things that are needed when adversity strikes, but I think some of that resiliency can come from calm, remaining calm. Arch definitely has that about him.”
Manning has another thing going on for him as well.
He’s grown up in an environment where he’s been able to tune out the outside world.
“I don’t really pay attention to what anybody has to say,” he said. “That doesn’t do anything for me. I control what I can control. I’m just focused on this year and getting better each day.
“Last year I was just trying to find my role in the offense. But now, I’m having to adjust to pretty much taking control of the whole team.”
Not only has Manning been tabbed as the early favorite for the Heisman Trophy, but also as the probable No. 1 draft choice in the NFL next year if he decides to skip his senior season.
He just can’t seem to escape the ‘greatness’ label.
“Greatness to me is you have to be a leader and you have to win games,” he said. “I think being a winner comes with greatness. So, I’m going to try and do both this year.”