Arch Manning is the biggest backup quarterback name possibly in the history of college football. But in a world of NIL and the transfer portal, Manning seems content to compete for a starting spot at Texas alongside current starter Quin Ewers.
Many believed that going into his freshman year Arch Manning would be the starter wherever he decided to commit (and he could have committed anywhere he wanted). However, after signing with Texas Quin Ewers played well enough to get the nod to start the 2023 season and after making the College Football Playoff, it’s pretty tough to make any kind of case to bench Ewers for anyone – even Manning.
Arch Manning Following Uncles Footsteps
In today’s game of college football, and even the NFL, everything is about the here and now. There is no patience, buildup, or process. It’s rare to see a high level quarterback get drafted and sit behind a current starter in the NFL. Instead, they are thrown in on day one, leading to many having short and unsuccessful careers (Zach Wilson, Trey Lance and Justin Fields to name a few).
The same is the same in college game. If a player isn’t getting the playing time they want, they transfer. But football wasn’t always this way, and it doesn’t take looking into Manning’s family tree to see some examples.
Eli Manning was a backup his freshman year at Ole Miss. He didn’t get his first start until his sophomore year, and even then, he only was able to lead the Rebels to a 7-4 overall record. Arch’s other uncle Peyton Manning came off the bench his freshman season before becoming the starter.
Is There a QB Battle at Texas?
Again, the idea of replacing Quin Ewers seems crazy given his success last year, but whispers and rumblings started to get a bit louder this week after Arch Manning showed out in the Texas Spring scrimmage. During the scrimmage Arch Manning looked every bit the part of the player and hype he was given during his recruitment.
During the scrimmage, which does need to be taken with a grain of salt since it wasn’t a live game, Manning completed 19 of 25 passes for 355 yards, three touchdowns and a single interception. There isn’t a single college football fan who wouldn’t love to see their starting QB putting up numbers like that for their team.
Was it enough to cause a debate? No. But if Ewers has a bad game, or if the SEC proves to be tougher than Texas fans like, the calls for Manning will get very loud, very quickly.
At What Point Would Arch Manning Transfer?
Arch Manning had offers from just about every school in the nation coming out of high school, and the only ones who didn’t offer him probably knew they didn’t have a shot at him anyway. For 120 teams (out of 134), Arch Manning could transfer and be the starting quarterback tomorrow without even taking snaps with the team.
With the new rules with the transfer portal, players no longer have to wait for a transfer portal window (which would have expired May 1st). If Arch decides to leave tomorrow, he can do that. If he wants to transfer in the middle of July he can do that as well.
Again, Manning could probably transfer to just about any school right now and start week one. But as the spring turns to summer, those options will begin to dwindle to the point where for Manning, he won’t have the ability to transfer to another blue-blood and start.
If Manning is going to transfer and start at a big school, he likely has until the end of the month.
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