ATLANTA — On Tuesday, Archibald Charles Manning introduced himself to his family’s generational playground, the Southeastern Conference. He stuck his hands in the pockets of his tan chinos and amiably chatted for 24 minutes with a group of reporters at SEC media days, seeming utterly at ease as the new face of Texas football. It was almost as if he expected to be in this spotlight his entire life.
With the help of conference realignment, the 21-year-old Manning follows the SEC footsteps of grandfather Archie (Mississippi), father Cooper (an Ole Miss recruit who never played in college due to spinal stenosis), uncle Peyton (Tennessee) and uncle Eli (Ole Miss). You may have heard of them. Possessing an even keel and the familiar familial wit, Arch should fit right in.
It only feels like Manning’s arrival has been pending for two decades. In reality, though, this has not been an immediate thing. After starting for four years at Isidore Newman School in New Orleans and establishing himself as the No. 1 national recruit in the Class of 2023—perhaps the most-hyped prospect in football history, frankly—it’s been a slow burn to becoming the starting QB for the Longhorns.
Manning redshirted his first season at Texas, playing two games and throwing five passes as a third-stringer. In Year 2, Manning started two games due to injury to starter Quinn Ewers and played a significant role in a third. For many modern five-star recruits, especially at quarterback, two years on the pine might have led to two transfers by now. Manning gritted his teeth and rode it out.
“I’m not going to lie, it was pretty tough,” Manning said. “Obviously, the competitor in me always wants to play and be on the field and help my team out, but looking back it’s definitely helped me grow as a person and a player and I’m blessed for that.”
Manning’s outlets when he wasn’t playing as much as he was accustomed to: stealth basketball games and a staffer’s office. He played pickup with his freshman roommate—an activity that probably would have been frowned upon by the coaching staff for fear of injury. And he knocked on the door of offensive analyst Paul Chryst, the former head coach at Wisconsin.
“I played every year in high school—I don’t know if that’s a flex or not,” Manning quipped. “Freshman year was tough because I didn’t deserve to play, but I wasn’t used to not playing. … I would always go in [Chryst’s] office, and it was like an hour of watching film and an hour of me venting. So I’m always grateful for him. I still keep in touch with him. He’s a great guy. He was just like, ‘Stay patient man, keep working.’ ”
The patient period of Manning’s football career is now over. His apprenticeship is done. It is go time. Anticipatory fever has spiked on the Forty Acres.
The premise is, in a vacuum, daunting: a guy who has thrown 95 collegiate passes will lead the potential No. 1 team in the country, and the season opener is in the Horseshoe against defending national champion Ohio State. But this is Arch Manning we’re talking about.
Raised in the ultimate football extended family. Brought along with care and consideration. Never turned into a commodity by over-anxious parents. Given two years in college to incubate as a quarterback and grow as a young adult. Tutored there by arguably the finest offensive mind in the college game, Steve Sarkisian.
Rip off the training wheels. Put Manning on the bike and let him sprint from the start. Leave no page of the playbook unused.
“That’s the beauty of a guy not having to get forced into playing when he first arrived and creating bad habits,” Sarkisian said. “And so he’s got a chance to learn and to grow. He’s got some great experience, too. But I think what we’ve learned from him for two years, too, and we’ve got a sense and a feel of things that he does really well and we can highlight those things all the while still staying true to systematically who we are.”
It should help Manning considerably to be paired with a 1,000-yard rusher (Quintrevion Wisner), a flush receiving corps and an outstanding defense. The Texas offensive line is rebuilt, which may put more of a premium on Manning’s considerable athleticism. But for the most part, the Horns look loaded, and shouldn’t need a gradual build to championship-contender status.
“I’m ready to roll,” he said. “I take pride on diving into the playbook, and hopefully, we can make it happen in real time.”
So the great proving ground awaits. But it’s important to know that perhaps the most celebrated recruit ever spent two years winning over the locker room. He was a willing spear carrier in the burnt orange army, a teammate who by all accounts never brought any diva attitude to campus.
“I think you’ve got to walk the walk first,” Manning said. “As much as it wasn’t always fun sitting those two years, I think I got a lot of respect for my teammates. So now I come at it [a leadership role] from a place of love, not just being a turd.”
Along the way, Manning had to learn from his peers. Safety Michael Taaffe, who rose from walk-on to starting safety and an All-American candidate, challenged him last year in the Texas training room to raise his expectations.
“He was like, ‘What are your goals for the season?’ ” Manning recalled. “I was like, ‘I don’t know. Get in at the end of some games and be ready when my number’s called.’ And he was like, ‘Why wouldn’t it be a goal to win a national championship, win a Heisman?’ And I was like, ‘Bro, I’m not even going to play.’ He was like, ‘That’s the mindset you have to have. I had that as a walk-on.’ I think that’s helped me a lot.”
The fans have had an “Arch the Savior” mindset since the day he committed. And so one of the great unanswered questions in Texas football history is whether Manning might have been able to take the Longhorns a step or two farther last season than Ewers did. It would have been very difficult for Sarkisian to bench a three-year starter in favor of the backup phenom, but more than a few burnt orange backers wish he had.
The Texas offense couldn’t solve the defenses of Georgia in the SEC championship game or Ohio State in the College Football Playoff semifinals, scoring 19 points in the former and 14 in the latter. Ewers wasn’t great in either of those games, completing less than 60% of his passes for fewer than eight yards per attempt, with three touchdowns and three interceptions. And his fumble in the red zone against the Buckeyes was returned for the game-sealing touchdown.
Ewers handled a fairly thankless situation well, though. As Manning himself noted, “It was probably a pain having me as the backup.”
It was also a pain for Manning at times being the celebrity backup. He was frequently stared at by fellow students on campus, so Manning developed a habit of calling his mom while he walked to and from class to defuse the awkwardness. No word on whether his thrice-weekly trips to Chipotle happen in disguise.
In New Orleans, at least, he’s a native son and just another member of a very famous family. He loves going with Archie to Mr. John’s Steakhouse, and remains close with his core group of high school friends. (They recently went on a golf trip to San Diego. Manning reports that his handicap has slipped to around a 13 lately; that’s the price of now being a college starting quarterback.)
If things go as prophesied, the normalcy in Manning’s life will soon wane even more. It may never return. Being the Next Man(ning) Up in the SEC is a considerable burden but also an incredible opportunity. It’s now time to find out how good Arch Manning can be.
