Quarterback Quinn Ewers is the unquestioned leader of the Texas Longhorns.
Playing through injuries and operating a system that isn’t designed to showcase his strengths, Ewers has gone largely underappreciated across the country.
However, he’ll surely open plenty of eyes if he’s able to lead the Longhorns to a national championship in the upcoming College Football Playoff.
Having said that, a major reason why Ewers has gone underappreciated is because of who his backup is.
Of course I’m referring to phenom quarterback Arch Manning.
In spot duty this season, Manning has more than lived up to the hype and has already shown enough to convince the football world that he is the real deal.
While it helps that his last name is Manning, aka the First Family of Football, it’s clear as day that Arch deserves every ounce of praise he’s getting.
Manning will take over as QB1 for Steve Sarkisian and the Longhorns next season.
While many evaluators are already projecting him to be the No. 1 overall pick in the 2026 NFL Draft, Manning’s family has hinted that the plan is for Arch to play two more seasons at Texas.
While things can always change, the Manning family’s philosophy is to make sure Arch is groomed and developed to the max before he steps foot on an NFL field.
In other words, there is as good of a chance – if not better – that Arch will be in the 2027 NFL Draft rather than 2026.
Regardless, there is no slowing down the speculation of where Manning might wind up whenever he does make the leap to the NFL.
In a clip that quickly went viral, the great Archie Manning said he hopes his grandson ends up being drafted by the Dallas Cowboys.
“Itâs funny, nobodyâs ever asked me that. Right off the bat if somebody asked me, Iâd say Cowboys,” Archie said in the viral video.
Unfortunately for Jerry Jones and Cowboys fans everywhere, it turns out that Archie was just “playing to the crowd” when he made the comment.
“That is something that kinda got outta hand,” Archie said. “I have a sports bar in New Orleans and I was just being nice to a patron.
“I told him I hope Arch will play three years of college football and he said, ‘And then maybe to the Cowboys?’ I said, ‘That’d be fine with me.’ I didn’t know he was going to put that on TikTok.”
Archieâs remarks, framed as a casual comment, highlight the growing frenzy around his grandson’s future. Yet, despite the hype, the Manning family appears steadfast in their approach.
In an era of frequent player transfers and outrageous NIL deals, the Mannings have charted a patient course for Archâs development.
âHeâs going to focus on college football, and weâll take the next step when itâs time,â Archie suggested in previous discussions about his grandsonâs trajectory.
As for the Cowboys, their quarterback situation could evolve in the coming years.
While Dak Prescott remains locked into his lucrative contract, speculation about his long-term future persists.
Some will attempt to slow down the Arch Manning hype train – but it’s clear that he will be the talk of college football next season (and beyond).
While we’ve seen just as many college football “phenoms” become busts in the NFL than we have stars, you just get the feeling that Arch is as close to a sure thing as we’ve seen in a very long time.
What are your thoughts on the mess Archie temporarily found himself in?
In the big picture, do you think Arch will end up living up to the massive hype???
