It's not just the national pundits.
The Texas Longhorns have begun the Arch Manning era at quarterback. As the grandson of legendary college quarterback Archie Manning and the nephew of Peyton and Eli Manning, he is one of the highest-rated high school recruits of all time.
He is set to take over as the starting quarterback from Quinn Ewers, who has held the position for the past three seasons. Ewers led Texas to a Big 12 championship, the program's first since 2009, and achieved back-to-back appearances in the College Football Playoff for the first time in school history.
There is significant hype surrounding Manning due to his last name and high recruiting ranking. Despite limited playing time in his first two seasons, he is currently the betting favorite to win the Heisman Trophy.
On "The Paul Finebaum Show," the SEC Network analyst explained that the hype from national pundits is not solely their doing but also influenced by the betting odds.
"Forget what a pundit says, but Vegas right now has him as the favorite to win the Heisman," Finebaum said. "I have no earthly idea how they come up with that stuff. So, it's not just based on two games last year. It's based on what a reasonable facsimile, not so much legitimate, but people actually bet real money on things like that."
Paul Finebaum Is Buying the Arch Manning Stock
Not only are the betting odds high on Manning this season, but Finebaum has also spoken highly of him due to Sarkisian.
“You buy stocks on what you think they’re going to be worth,” Finebaum previously said. “I’m giving comments, and others are as well on Arch, in terms of what we don’t know. Everybody knows the same thing you just told us. That wasn’t breaking news that he had a tough game. So did other people. But Steve Sarkisian believes in the guy, and I believe in Steve Sarkisian.”
Finebaum is so confident in Texas that he predicts the Longhorns will finish 11-1 and win the national championship this season.
Not Every National Pundit Is Sold on Arch Manning
There are differing opinions about Manning for the upcoming season. ESPN’s Greg McElroy sees potential in him but wants to see how he performs against top competition.
“I love Arch Manning,” McElroy previously said. “I think that Arch Manning’s got a chance to be a great player. But until he goes out there and does it against Ohio State, I’m going to have questions because I saw what he did when he had to go in the game against Georgia. It did not go well for him.”
McElroy examined Manning's performance against the Louisiana-Monroe Warhawks, UTSA Roadrunners and Mississippi State Bulldogs. During those games, he threw for 806 yards, eight touchdowns and two interceptions, completing 69.4% of his passes. Additionally, he rushed for 82 yards on an average of 8.2 yards per carry, along with two touchdowns. However, he noted that none of these teams had a strong defense, with Mississippi State ranked 126th in the country for that category.
McElroy's concern arises from the regular-season game against Georgia, where Manning briefly took over for Ewers in an effort to energize the team. Manning completed 3-of-6 passes for 19 yards but also had a critical fumble just before halftime, which led to a score for the Bulldogs.
Texas Loses Several Key Players from Last Season's Team
Many national pundits are optimistic about Texas this season; however, there are several uncertainties surrounding the Longhorns. The team is experiencing significant roster turnover, having lost a substantial amount of production from last year. Texas ranks No. 103 in returning production, with only 29 percent of its offensive players returning. This positions them at No. 126 in terms of returning offensive production.
The Longhorns have lost four of their top six receivers, their second-leading rusher, and four of the five starting offensive linemen. Despite these challenges, Texas has excelled in recruiting and secured the top recruiting class in the nation for 2025, according to 247Sports.
Manning will start his first game of the 2025 season against the Ohio State Buckeyes on the road. This matchup is a rematch of the College Football Playoff semifinal and is scheduled for noon ET on August 30.
Related: Ex-Texas Coach Sends Reality Check to Arch Manning as Longhorns Eye National Title Run
This story was originally reported by Athlon Sports on Aug 19, 2025, where it first appeared in the College section. Add Athlon Sports as a Preferred Source by clicking here.
Category: General Sports
