Entering college football, many thought that Texas quarterback Arch Manning would be a superstar.
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Manning had the last name, the ranking, and was playing for a storied program. He had to sit for most of the first two years of his college career behind Quinn Ewers, who was eventually drafted in the late rounds by the Miami Dolphins.
Manning got his opportunity to start full-time during the 2025 season, and things haven’t exactly been as impressive as many would’ve expected.
There have been questions about whether Manning will decide to enter the NFL draft, but some have raised concerns, including Joel Klatt, who even went as far as to say that Manning still needs another 20 games as a starting quarterback in college to improve and develop at the level he needs to.
“We tiptoe around because of his last name,” Klatt said on “The Herd.” “But even those guys would probably appreciate honesty. Arch was dreadful early in the year, and he’s gotten better in the last couple of weeks.
“Arch is a decent to average college football quarterback early in his career, and he’s going to need at least 20 more starts to be even remotely ready for the National Football League … As far as number of starts, he’s early in his career. You know, again, this position, the position of quarterback, there is no way you can replicate it. So I don’t care if it’s your third year in college or if it’s your first year in college, the only thing that matters is number of games started.”
It almost seemed like a guarantee that Manning was going to be the No. 1 overall pick in either the upcoming draft or in 2027, but that isn’t the case any longer.
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Throughout the season, the sophomore hasn’t exactly played poorly, throwing for 2,123 yards, but he isn’t as dominant as many expected him to be.
For more on the Texas Longhorns, head to Newsweek Sports.