Arch Manning was one of the most sought after recruits in recent memory this past recruiting cycle and he’s now a Longhorn.
It was arguably one of the biggest wins of the last decade for Texas on the recruiting trail as they landed a quarterback from one of the most proven quarterback families. While his presence in the locker room was thought to lead to a quarterback battle of the ages between he and Quinn Ewers, the youngest Manning gunslinger is still working his way up the depth chart.
However, while being viewed as one of the most valuable athletes in all of college football thanks to his notoriety, there was once a belief he wouldn’t partake in NIL yet. We learned on Tuesday what his first NIL deal will be as he inked one with trading card company Panini America.
This partnership marks Manning’s first NIL deal and will lead to Panini creating trading cards that will include exclusive autographs from Manning. The first edition of Manning’s card release will be a one-of-one “Prizm black” autographed card that is being auctioned on Panini’s website. As of Tuesday afternoon, the bid has worked its way up to $40,000.
Unlike most athletes that rack in the dough for themselves, Manning is donating all of the proceeds to a Central Texas nonprofit with the help of St. David’s HealthCare and St. David’s Foundation in Austin, Texas. The winner also gets to meet Manning, play catch, and help present the check.
Manning is expected to serve as a reserve this season behind Ewers and battle Maalik Murphy for the starting role next season.