Tag: Arch Manning

Arch Manning, Trey Owen – Texas football’s future prepare to take the helm

Arch Manning is set to lead the Texas Longhorns in 2025 as Quinn Ewers eyes the NFL Draft. Discover Manning’s journey and Trey Owens’ rise.

It’s no longer a question of if Arch Manning will take the helm for the Texas Longhorns. It’s when. A viral video from years ago captured a young Manning, proudly sporting a burnt orange Texas shirt, declaring his college choice: “Texas.” That moment came to fruition when Manning officially committed to the Longhorns in 2022.

Manning arrived at the Forty Acres with the understanding he’d play understudy to Quinn Ewers, the sophomore quarterback who has made this team his own. “This is Quinn’s team,” Manning said just weeks ago, acknowledging his current role. But as Ewers eyes the 2025 NFL Draft — where analysts project him as a first- or second-round pick — the focus inevitably shifts to what comes next.

While Ewers’ draft stock isn’t locked into a top-10 spot yet, strong performances in Texas’ remaining games could elevate his position. Even if Ewers leads Texas to an SEC Championship or the College Football Playoff, it’s unlikely he’ll return for his senior season due to the injury risks and his growing NFL potential.

Assuming Ewers departs, Manning will likely make his starting debut on August 30, 2025, in a high-stakes season opener against Ohio State at Buckeye Stadium. While a challenging atmosphere awaits, Manning’s pedigree and preparation inspire confidence. The next question: Who will step up as QB2?

The Rise of Trey Owens

When Manning secures the starting role, Trey Owens is certain to become  the team’s primary backup. The Houston native and Cy-Fair High School graduate brings an impressive résumé. A two-time all-district honoree and All-American Bowl participant, Owens tallied 6,411 passing yards and 81 touchdowns against just 11 interceptions during his high school career.

Owens’ senior season saw him complete 222 of 313 passes for 3,303 yards and 43 touchdowns, earning District 17-6A Offensive MVP honors. His leadership propelled Cy-Fair to an 11-2 record, a district title, and a playoff run. Owens is known for his consistency, poise, and ability to deliver in high-pressure moments, qualities that make him a strong candidate for QB2.

Owens did see a few snaps this year during the UTSA game at DKR. He completed for 19 yards, and completed about half of the passes he threw for. He is still worthy of a start, in the event, Arch is unavailable or needs the rest. After all, he was recruited by Sarkisian for a reason. Just check out his throws in the Spring Game:

What’s Next for Texas Football?

As the Longhorns prepare for a new era, all signs point to Arch Manning becoming the face of the program. But with Trey Owens and a deep quarterback room behind him in the next recruiting class means Texas is building a foundation for long-term success. The future is bright on the Forty Acres, and the SEC will soon see what the Longhorns are made of. It Just Means More.

A legendary Saints quarterback reached out to Darren Rizzi after Falcons win

A legendary Saints QB congratulated Darren Rizzi on beating the Falcons, but he initially thought it was Archie Manning’s famous grandson, not ‘the big dog’ himself:

A legendary former New Orleans Saints quarterback congratulated Darren Rizzi on beating the Falcons, but he initially thought it was Archie Manning’s famous grandson, not Archie himself, texting him on Monday. Rizzi shared the story and his family’s surprising connection with the Mannings when reflecting on his first career win as an NFL head coach.

Plenty of well-wishers reached out after Rizzi ended the Saints’ seven-game losing streak, but he says the message he received from the elder Manning stands out most.

“I got a lot, my favorite one so far is from Archie Manning,” Rizzi grinned. “Archie reached out. And little side story to that, my son Christian who is at the University of Texas, he and Arch are good friends. When I glanced at my phone I thought it was Arch. And then I realized, ‘Oh no, this is from the big dog, this is Archie.’ And so we had a nice correspondence. I really, really appreciated that, that was pretty cool. He was the one who started it all, right?”

Christian Rizzi is a deep snapper for the Longhorns, which isn’t much of a surprise given his father’s history coaching special teams. But their family has crossed paths with the Mannings before, and at times competed in high school football games.

“His grandsons and my sons played against each other, so that was pretty cool,” Rizzi continued.  “I’ve talked to Archie before here at practice and everything. That was pretty nice, a pretty neat text to get.”

It sounds like Manning will be watching when Rizzi leads the Saints into their next game with the Cleveland Browns. Getting out of a 3-7 skid is no small task, but that’s exactly what Rizzi must do to salvage this season. Who knows? Maybe the Saints will be in position to draft the younger Manning in a year or two once he turns pro.

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ABC’s Tessitore shares insight into Texas QB Arch Manning’s team-first mindset

Texas Longhorns Quarterback Arch Manning declined a media interview after a game, according to ABC’s Joe Tessitore.

During the Texas vs. Florida ABC broadcast, Joe Tessitore shared a notable story about Texas freshman quarterback Arch Manning that reflects the young athlete’s humble approach to his role on the team.

According to Tessitore, Manning was offered an opportunity for a post-game interview earlier this season but declined, responding with a comment that underscored his respect for team dynamics. “This is Quinn’s team right now,” Manning said, referring to junior quarterback Quinn Ewers, who currently leads the Longhorns’ offense.

Manning, a highly touted recruit from the renowned Manning family, joined Texas amid significant anticipation from fans and media alike. His decision to defer the spotlight has is praise worthy, illustrating a commitment to teamwork over individual recognition. This is certainly a move backed by the Manning family, very classy.

Longhorns lineman graded as best pass blocker by PFF

As the Longhorns offense has been hard to stop, Banks has been at the center of their success

During the 2024 campaign, Longhorns offensive tackle Kelvin Banks Jr. has been one of the best players at his position. The Summer Creek High School product is projected to be a first-round pick in the 2025 NFL Draft by many mock drafts, and his value is only rising. On Wednesday, PFF College graded Banks as the best pass blocker in the nation.

As the Longhorns offense has been hard to stop, Banks has been at the center of their success. The talented junior has been a model of consistency since making his Longhorns debut three years ago. He has appeared in 34 games and helped put Quinn Ewers and Arch Manning in a position to succeed.

Additionally, Banks has continued to add to his trophy case this year. The Longhorns star has been named the SEC Offensive Lineman of the Week twice and the Outland Trophy National Player of the Week once. His excellent play was reflected in his 91.4 rating from PFF.

Over the next few weeks, the Longhorns will need Banks at his best. One of the reasons they have been one of the best teams in the country is the offense.  With Banks opening up space for his teammates, Texas has only lost one game and put points on the board in a hurry. As a result they are poised to make a deep playoff run.

With wins at a premium, Banks should continue to see national recognition, which could push his rating even higher. That would come as no surprise for the Longhorns, as Banks has already proven he is one of the best at his position.

Did Sark’s benching of Quinn Ewers actually work? Breaking down the decision

Breaking down the short and long term ramifications of Steve Sarkisian’s decision to replace Quinn Ewers with Arch Manning against Georgia.

Texas coach Steve Sarkisian has been openly second-guessed since the second quarter of the Longhorns 30-15 loss to Georgia. Is it fair?

With 4:43 left in the second quarter, the offense was flat. There was no life. The five Longhorns possessions ended punt, punt, fumble, punt and interception

Meanwhile, the Bulldogs already had 20 on the board.

There are only so many buttons a coach can push to change momentum. One of them is to change quarterbacks. Sark has a very capable backup QB. He pulled Ewers and inserted Arch Manning.

Immediately, experts from around college football started to question the move. They started to psychoanalyze Ewers. They started to talk about the future impact.

All valid questions. It didn’t help that Sark’s move seemingly backfired. Manning fared no better leading the offense to a punt and fumble.

A lot of former quarterbacks have joined the conversation about the move. Even former Aggie Johnnie Manziel.

“Coach Sark has come out and said that [Ewers] is his guy, he’s our starter, so at no point throughout would I ever think I would see him have to go to the bench. I thought this was a really weird decision. I don’t think it’s a situation where you have to go to the sideline and look at something or anything like that. Maybe [Texas] were trying to get a little bit of a spark going, but it didn’t really come to fruition the way they wanted it to.” — Johnny Manziel

It’s hard to imagine any quarterback advocating for a starter to be pulled. But the move might have worked better than the national media is giving Sark credit for. At least in the second half.

AUSTIN, TEXAS – OCTOBER 19: Quinn Ewers #3 of the Texas Longhorns walks off the field after being defeated by the Georgia Bulldogs 30-15 at Darrell K Royal-Texas Memorial Stadium on October 19, 2024 in Austin, Texas. (Photo by Alex Slitz/Getty Images)

Ewers came out of the locker room looking more confident. He played better. His throws were better. The junior was 3 of 5 on the next drive, which ended in a Ewers TD pass to Isaiah Bond for Texas’ first score of the game. Ewers hit Bond again on the 2-point conversion.

UT then went on a bit of a run to cut the lead to 23-15. Ultimately, Texas and Ewers couldn’t complete the comeback. But you can’t rule out that Ewers two series on the bench may have contributed to his hot start in the second half.

The long term impact of the move is being much discussed across the nation. ESPN’s Greg McElroy had some harsh words about the move.

“So when your backup quarterback has rock star status, you just can’t make that move there. Now Pandora’s box has been opened, because Steve Sarkisian showed that he is not afraid to replace Quinn Ewers in favor of Arch Manning in the event in which Quinn Ewers struggles. So the only way you could have pulled the plug on Ewers is if Arch is going to be your guy moving forward.” — Greg McElroy

It’s an interesting point. McElroy is suggesting the move could harm Ewers’ psyche, partly because the backup is famous. Sark has stated, before and after the game, that Ewers is his starting QB. I don’t think anyone on the team questions that.

Could the move harm Ewers mentally? Maybe. But if Ewers is the guy that’s going to lead Texas to the playoff and a chance at the national title, his mental makeup better be stronger than to cave in for the season because he was benched for two series. Ewers has been through a lot in his college career. I don’t think the benching Saturday will have much of an impact.

The more pressing questions are: Why did Ewers have a bad game in the first place? Why did Ewers look lost? Why has Ewers not risen to his pre-injury level of confidence and performance?

The short answer is he’s still probably hurt on some level. If your abs hurt, they hurt on every throw. You just can’t put your entire core into a throw if the oblique injury is nagging.

In 2021, Georgia QB JT Daniels suffered the same injury in Week 2 and wasn’t cleared to play until mid-October. By then, Stetson Bennett had taken over and would lead the Bulldogs to back-to-back national titles.

It you’re in pain every time you throw the ball, you will not have the same amount of confidence you have when you’re pain free. The biggest impact on Ewers mentality is most likely his health.

McElroy mentions Manning’s “rock star status.” Should the fame and notoriety of the backup have any impact at all on who plays? Should Sark take the celebrity status of his backup and outside opinion into account when making the decision of which QB to play? McElroy thinks so.

“With who the backup is, and the celebrity status that he carries, I would have avoided that at all cost. That’s a problem because now, first series of the game, if Quinn Ewers starts a game one for three and they punt after a five-play drive stalls, you’re going to start hearing chants of Arch. You have to force your starting quarterback into feeling comfortable.” — Greg McElroy

Sark’s job is to win. A coach has to be aware of player mentality, but ultimately, this is big boy college football. This is a program where you have to win. It is a program you have to be aiming for the top. Sark might worry about feelings, but winning takes precedent.

Ewers is far from perfect. He is a really good college quarterback. There are only a handful of QBs that might be better. Does Ewers have what it takes to beat a top shelf defense? A top three of four defense? He never has.

I fear he doesn’t have enough arm strength or mobility to thrive against an elite SEC defense, or at the next level for that matter. Speed on the other side of the ball is his kryptonite.

It is obvious Manning’s tools are better. His arm strength has a much better chance against the speed of an elite SEC, or even NFL, defense. But his experience is lacking. We saw that on full display during his two series against Georgia.

No one knows Ewers and Manning as players better than Sark. Juggling the two personalities is and will be a challenge. But if you start hamstringing the coach based on outside perceptions and popularity, then you’re not doing everything you can to win. You’re not doing everything to be at the top of the sport.

Football is a meritocracy. 

Why Texas temporarily benched Quinn Ewers for Arch Manning against Georgia

Texas made a huge change at quarterback against Georgia.

This story has been updated. 

No. 1 Texas fell behind to No. 5 Georgia early at home on Saturday night and decided to make a quarterback change before halftime.

The Longhorns opted to bench quarterback Quinn Ewers in the game’s second quarter. Ewers struggled in the first half against the Bulldogs’ defense, which sent quarterback Arch Manning into the game.

Ewers only had 17 yards of passing and an interception before he was pulled from the contest. Rather than keep Ewers in, Texas chose to give Manning a chance to lead the Longhorns back into the game.

At halftime, Texas coach Steve Sarkisian explained to ESPN’s Holly Rowe why he made the quarterback switch without reveling if he’d put Ewers back in.

However, Ewers returned to the game after halftime to start for Texas.

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Texas benches Quinn Ewers in favor of Arch Manning down 20 to Georgia

Arch Manning replaced Quinn Ewers for QB against Texas

Quinn Ewers had a rough first half against Georgia. The Heisman contender was 6-of-12 for 17 yards with an interception and lost fumble on Saturday.

Down 20-0, Texas coach Steve Sarkisian made the call. He benched Ewers and sent in heralded redshirt freshman Arch Manning.

Manning’s first drive would have been a three-and-out but Georgia was flagged for a penalty on third down.

The drive ended without another first down.

Sarkisian had said Texas was Ewers’ team and the only way he would come out would be due to injury.

That changed when the top-ranked Longhorns fell into a deep hole against the fifth-ranked Dawgs.

 

Kirby Smart praises Texas QB Arch Manning ahead of UGA-Texas

UGA football coach Kirby Smart likes what he has seen out of Texas Longhorns QB Arch Manning this season

Georgia Bulldogs head coach Kirby Smart praised Texas Longhorns quarterback Arch Manning ahead of the Georgia at Texas game.

Manning has started two games this season for Texas, but he served as the back up for Texas’s 34-3 win over the Oklahoma Sooners. The 6-foot-4, 225-pound redshirt freshman quarterback has completed nine touchdowns and two interceptions this season. Manning has passed for 901 yards and a QBR of 87.5.

“They’re both (Texas quarterbacks) really good. I’ll say this,” said Smart.  “You watch the games that Arch (Manning) has played, he played really well. He did some really good things. I mean look at his numbers. He played and he comes out first couple plays against Mississippi State, ripping it and firing it in his first SEC play, and he played really good.”

However, Manning is not projected to start against Georgia.

“Quinn’s (Ewers) a great player, and they got a great quarterback situation because they’ve got two guys that both are capable of winning and playing well,” continued Smart.

Texas is expected to start quarterback Quinn Ewers, but if Ewers goes down, then there won’t be much of a drop off for the Longhorns. Manning offers a little more mobility than Ewers. Manning has 13 carries for 82 yards and three touchdowns this season.

Smart praised Ewers’ awareness and athleticism during his press conference on Monday. Smart notes that Ewers is quite similar to Georgia quarterback Carson Beck.

Longhorns Wire staff predictions for Oklahoma Sooners vs. Texas Longhorns

The Longhorns enter the latest installment of the Red Rivalry as the best team in the country due to a 5-0 start

After a week off, the Texas Longhorns are back in action on Saturday afternoon against SEC foe the Oklahoma Sooners. The Longhorns enter the latest installment of the Red Rivalry as the best team in the country due to a 5-0 start.

Quinn Ewers will be under center after missing the last two and a half games. In his absence, Arch Maning kept the offense rolling and recorded the first SEC win of his career.

While the Longhorns have been the talk of the college football world, Oklahoma has also been hard to beat. Through five games, the Sooners have posted a 4-1 record, averaging 297.8 yards per game. This should be another memorable game in a historic rivalry.

https://twitter.com/TexasLonghorns/status/1844802513184178377

Jamie Gatlin’s Prediction:

This weekend the Longhorns have the opportunity to make a statement in conference play. The Sooners will be a challenging team to beat and have a tough defense. However, they will be tasked with slowing down a Longhorns offense averaging 45 points per game.

Last year, the Longhorns’ only regular-season loss came against the Sooners, meaning they will be looking for revenge. Both teams have plenty to prove in a competitive conference that features nine ranked teams putting wins at a premium.

With Quinn Ewers back in action, the Longhorns offense should continue to roll thanks to a receiving core that features Ryan Wingo, Isaiah Bond, and Matthew Golden. If Oklahoma cannot stop the Longhorns passing attack, it could be a long afternoon.

Final Score: Texas 35, Oklahoma 17

Trey Luerssen’s Prediction:

This should be Texas’ year. Texas has the quarterback advantage. The advantage on offense. And despite the praise Oklahoma’s defense gets, I believe Texas has the advantage on that side of the ball too. Texas is the better team. But crazy things can happen in this game.

Last year, Texas suffered one single regular season loss. That’s right, it was the Sooners. The result was some very nervous moments when the four-team college football playoff participants were revealed, instead of a rubber stamp. A loss to the Sooners will mean less this season with the playoffs expanded to 12 teams. But that’s not something anything in burnt orange is thinking about.
Quinn Ewers, back from injury, will be the key. We should be able to tell early on in the game if he’s healed and mentally ready for the day. If he is, it’s hard to see a path for Oklahoma to win. They will need Texas turnovers, and Ewers has been more careful with the ball this year.

Oklahoma is going with redshirt freshman Michael Hawkins Jr. at QB. He definitely has speed that the Texas defense hasn’t encountered yet this year. Hawkins also throws a good deep ball. But OU’s line is suspect at best.
It’s hard to see Oklahoma winning this game unless Texas implodes. Based on what we’ve seen so far in 2024, that includes a win a the Big House and two and a half games with a backup QB, the Longhorns don’t resemble a team that beats itself.

Final Score: Texas 38, Oklahoma 13

ManningCast to feature legendary Saints QB vs. Chiefs

The Saints vs. Chiefs “ManningCast” has a strong guest list, with legendary former Saints quarterback Archie Manning among them:

The Kansas City Chiefs versus New Orleans Saints matchup in Week 5 will be featured as a “ManningCast” game on ESPN2, scheduled for 7:13 p.m. CT/8:13 p.m. ET. The guest list for this week’s broadcast group makes it worth watching. Peyton and Eli Manning will sit down with theeir father, Saints legend Archie Manning. He’s also the father of Cooper Manning and grandfather of Texas Longhorns quarterback Arch Manning.

Additionally, it will include legendary former New England Patriots head coach Bill Belichick, and actor Paul Rudd, a Chiefs superfan and the narrator of the 2007 season of “Hard Knocks,” which featured the Chiefs as well.

Having this group together will be an interesting dynamic, as Eli Manning will be able to talk with Belichick about the two Super Bowl victories he had against him. The Manning family will primarily be together on broadcast, and we can get perspective from Rudd about the Chiefs and his fandom as well. The “ManningCast” always has some fun broadcast groups and guests, but this one will be a fun one no doubt.

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